


Secured

by Trxshking



Category: VIXX
Genre: Also this my first fic, Alternate Universe - College/University, But I hope you enjoy, But they'll appear in later chapters, I honestly don't know what to add to the tags lmao, M/M, So its gonna be shitty, They're very subtle, hyukbin, wontaek, you'll have to squint
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-16
Updated: 2017-11-07
Packaged: 2018-12-16 00:35:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11817525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trxshking/pseuds/Trxshking
Summary: Hakyeon had never been one to take relationships too seriously. Throughout his 24 years of life, he had met many people and gone out with his fair share. His carefree attitude when in a relationship would often be his downfall."Am i not important to you?""Was this just to pass time with?""Why don't you treat me like our friends do to each other?""This just feels as if I'm your friend. As if we never really dated.""Did you ever really love me?"Questions like these were often replayed like a broken record by different people. He never thought about going the extra mile to make his partners feel so secure when he showed plently of affection as it was.Being dumped has become a norm for him, that he doesn't hold up high expectations. But one encounter with a certain male might make him change his mind, finally understanding the grief his past partners went through, and be the purser rather than the pursed.





	1. Chapter 1

"You two already broke up?" A man asked after having bitten into his burger.

Hakyeon glanced at his friend, Taekwoon, briefly before nodding as he sighed. "I guess this is a new record for me." he scoffed.

"Usually your relationships last a month before they decide to break it up with you." Taekwoon chuckled at the thought of his newfound shortest relationship to last exactly 2 weeks. 

Hakyeon sighed for the nth time that day. He thought back to his confrontation with his girlfriend, well ex-girlfriend if he were to be technical.

_The start of his university day had started by receiving a text message from his girlfriend. It was a simple message that read, 'we need to talk,' and the location where to meet up. He sighed at the thought of having to start his Thursday at university like this._

_As he turned on his heel, after having sent a quick reply to her, he felt a gush of wind. The feeling of wind brushing against his body was always relaxing for him, and he was rather glad that while it had started to get really chilly during the nights, even though Autumn has still not arrived, the mornings were rather warm with the occasional breeze hitting his face. After relishing in the coolness, he walked towards the location his girlfriend had set on._

_"Hakyeon," she started, staring at the floor as tears started to swell up in her eyes. The boy in question inhaled deeply, already being able to tell what she wanted to talk about after having gone through this one too many time._

_"Is it that I'm not pretty enough? Or that I'm too clingy, or am i just your playtoy? Is that why you I feel as if you're so distance towards me. Please give me an answer."_

_Hakyeon disliked these questions. They were always the first things his partners asked when they felt too insecure in their relationship. They always wondered if it was them that was failing in the relationship. And if that wasn't the case, the idea of him just using them to pass time with is._

_Hakyeon was one to show affection towards people he knew, whether it be friends or lovers. Even if Taekwoon called his actions 'annoying,' it isn't enough to keep his lovers satisfied. He did have to admit to himself, that in most of his relationships he never took them too serious. He was too carefree in his actions, and while even if he thought he showed enough love towards his partners, it was never enough._

_Even if he were to be less serious than he should be in a relationship, he always has his partners feelings in mind. From the start when they confess to him, to the end, when they break up with him over something he thinks of to be trivial._

_'Maybe I should just stop accepting their request to date. If this is the outcome every time, why bother.'_

_He exhaled deeply before speaking. "I am sorry if you feel as though I'm not treating you like how you think a boyfriend should treat their girlfriend. I've tried to do whatever you wanted, but i guess it isn't enough."_

_She lifted her head to meet Hakyeon's gaze, tears dripping down her cheeks. He felt a pang of guilt shoot through his chest once his eyes laid upon that sight. He never really got used to this. Guilt would always wash over him in the aftermath, as he understood to some extent their pain but didn't know how to change the problem._

_"I think we should break up."_

_'There it is.' That one phrase that seemingly always comes out of his partners mouths. Many people would feel sadness rip through their bodies, and fight with themselves to change to make their partners happy. Some people take those words without feeling much emotion, devoid of it, knowing it was to come._

_And the latter that was Hakyeon's case. He might feel guilty for having disappointed the girl's expectations and not being up to her standard, but in reality, he felt nothing. He was too used to going through this situation, that he can predict what the other person might say._

_"Let's break up then."_

"Was it the usual," Taekwoon started to ask and coughed, changing the pitch of his voice higher, "Am i not important enough?"" 

Hakyeon chuckled bitterly at his good friend, vaguely remembering a sobbing Taekwoon asking the same question long ago. He held up an okay sign while mouthing 'bingo.'

"Classic." Taekwoon simply stated. 

"What is?" A gruff voice asked from behind them. The two boys turned their heads to the direction where the sound came from and saw the owner of it, Wonshik.

Taekwoon's eyes lit up instantly after having set his sight on the boy. He hurriedly scooted over to give Wonshik space to sit and place his plate of food down. Said boy quickly sat down on the free space between Taekwoon and Hakyeon, impatiently wanting an answer to his question.

"Just the usual case of how my relationships end." Hakyeon explained to their clueless friend. Taekwoon spoke up after Wonshik nodded at Hakyeon's short but obvious explanation. "This is a new record Wonshik. Its been exactly fourteen days since they started going out, and he already got dumped." He said bluntly while trying to stiffle a chuckle.

Wonshik's eyes widened in shock at that new piece of information. He had known Hakyeok had recently gone out with someone, but he wasn't sure when exactly. It had been a surprise to hear that from four weeks before Hakyeon's ultimate fate of being dumped, it had gone down to two. His hand quickly shot up to his mouth, to silence the laughs that wished to spill out, although with his laughs being loud enough to wake a sleeping baby, it was futile.

Hakyeon glared at both his friends, and started to laugh, emphasizing the 'ha's', to let the boys know he didn't find that so hilarious.

Sure, his most recent relationship has been shortened to a length he did not think was imaginable, but it wasn't that bizarre. Unlike from other people he heard about from his friends, two weeks beat one day. And Hakyeon is very proud, that while he may not be the most ideal lover, he isn't at that point of no return.

"Oh right," Taekwoon suddenly chirped in, "An old friend of mine is coming to our university tomorrow. I'm gonna show him around, so I might bring him by at around lunch." 

Hakyeon cooed at Taekwoon at the thought of him having another good friendship with someone. Taekwoon was very introverted, and to his knowledge, he just hung out with him, along with Wonshik and two other of their friends. He was extremely shy around people he didn't know, although people would mistake that shyness with intimidation, and it sadden Hakyeon that they judged his dear friend too quickly for his own good. Hearing Taekwoon talking about an old friend got Hakyeon elated with happiness and pride over his friend. 

"Our Taekwoonie is growing up and making more friends." He squealed, although once he remember that they were in public, he coughed and regained his composure. 

Both Taekwoon and Wonshik rolled their eyes at their friend's antics, as one of the boys chuckled at his embarrassment afterwords. "Shut up, its not that incredible, mother." Taekwoon said, his words laced with sarcasm.

Hakyeon laughed at his remark. He taught his friend amazingly in the arts of sarcasm. "Mother is only happy for your achievements Woonie." He said as he feigned a look of hurt on his face while placing his hand to his chest, making himself look extra dramatic. Taekwoon rolled his eyes over his friend's actions, grinning.

"Oh boy, Hakyeon is channelling his inner mother again." A voice said in front of them. "Should we make a run for it Binnie?" A low pitched laugh erupted from beside the owner of the voice and simply sat down on the table, across from Hakyeon. 

Hakyeon turned his body, trying to get comfortable in his new position on the sturdy seats, and faced the other boy who was filled with laughter just moments ago. He noticed some quick movement from the other person, swiftly moving next to the empty seat. He set his plate down and took the now occupied seat. "I think we're safe for now Hyuk." 

Taekwoon quietly mumbled something, which was intended for the two boys, Hyuk and Hongbin, although Hakyeon couldn't make it out clearly. He glanced at Taekwoon briefly in confusion before settling his eyes straight ahead, noticing the two boys become stiff. He quirked his eyebrow in confusion, and glanced at Wonshik, wondering if he had any idea was happened. Wonshik could feel a stare piercing his body and turned his head towards the direction it came from, and having come face to face with Hakyeon. Having gotten an idea what Hakyeon had wanted to ask, with his stares from Taek to the two boys being obvious, he shrugged. He didn't exactly want to be involved in whatever their situation was.

"Well that was interesting," Hakyeon exclaimed, confusion evident in his voice, hoping to break the tension.

Hyuk and Hongbin both looked at Hakyeon and erupted in a fit of nervous giggles. He noticed a faint pink taint their cheeks. He wondered what they and Taek were on the same page about, but quickly disregarded it as he had to tell them about being a free and single man again. His reactions were exactly what he'd expected they'd be, but how can he blame them. Its become a norm for him to date for a short time then get dumped. Wash, rinse, repeat.

 

The afternoon went by with much chatter from the group of five boys before the bell rang, announcing the start of their next classes. They stood up from their seats, having already thrown away their trash beforehand, and started to walk to their upcoming classes. Waving goodbye to each other, they went their seperate ways, continuing their school life that had been momentarily stopped for peace briefly.

After having spent over two hours in attending their remaining classes, Hakyeon walked out of his last class for the day. He sighed as he remembered that day he had to go to his workplace earlier than usual. One of his co-workers had suddenly called in sick around noon, and Hakyeon, being the responsible worker he is, was asked to cover her shift along with his. 

He didn't exactly blame his boss for making him work much more than usual, they were short on employees and had to work with what they had. Although the bakery wasn't filled to the brim with customers very frequently, compared to the coffee shop across from them which seemed to always be busy, they had quite a few regulars come in around the same time. Hakyeon sighed in bliss, relieved that he hadn't applied for that coffee shop beforehand. He wouldn't know how to deal with the overflowing customers and, more than a few, occasional angry customers over their lack of caffeine. Although the position of the bakery and coffee shop do tend to still bring customers who are frustrated and irritated after having to wait in line. 

Even while Hakyeon had a vivacious kind of personality, although his friends would often tease him by saying he goes overboard on being so animated that its borderline annoying, that irritation easily transfers over to him. More so when most of the customers are in the same state. That is one reason he's rather glad he doesn't have to take the morning shift or he'd be mentally exhausted by the afternoon.

As he made his way out of the building and towards the bus station, he felt something vibrate in his pocket. He reached his hand inside and pulled out his phone, unlocking the screen and glancing at the notification while still walking, never once stopping. 

_**Hyukkie:**_  
_Mother Cha_ ****  
_Where are you_  
_You were supposed to come to the dance hall and help me brush up on my skills  
>:(_

****

********** **

Hakyeon laughed quietly as he read the message sent from the youngest of the bunch. He quickly sent a reply, frequently glancing upwards to avoid crashing into someone or something. It wasn't pleasant walking into a tree the last time he responded to a text. How he walked off the concrete and onto the grass for that to happen, he can't recall, he was too occupied with his electronic device. Texting back his friends will end up leading him to fall into a hole if he isn't careful and conscious of his surroundings.

 _ **Yeonnie:**_  
_I forgot to tell you i had to go to work earlier than usual today_  
_Wonshik said he didn't have anything to do today, other than composing that song he's been working on_  
_Ask him  
_ _I'll repay you next time_

As soon as he sent the last message, he shut off his phone, and put it back in his pocket. He felt horrible having to cancel on Hyuk after the boy had swallowed his pride and asked the older for some help. He had wanted to improve on his dancing for the longest time, and after telling Hakyeon that he had trouble doing so alone, he had stubbornly said, drawing out the actual request "Its not like I need help badly, but I'd still, you know, would appreciate it if you, help me."

Hakyeon, being estatic to being asked for help, especially by one of the two boys who often avoided his meddling, had prepared beforehand on what type of dance they should start of with. He had not expected his sudden schedule to be shifted completely from filling in on work, and regreted abandoning Hyuk on their practice session, even if it wasn't entirely his fault. 

He stopped in his tracks, and shook his head quickly, disregarding the small feeling of guilt swelling up in his chest as there was nothing he could do. He resumed walking, only having a few feet left until he reached the bus station. He reached into his pocket to get out his phone, and turned on the screen, checking the time. He realized he only had approximately five minutes before the bus would arrive to take it's passengers to their destination. 

He sped up his walking, wanting to arrive just before the bus arrived, so he could sit and relax for a moment before his long hours of work. As soon as he arrived, he scanned the seats, trying to find an empty seat, but they were already occupied. He sighed at his luck, and simply stood along with the other individuals who waited for the bus.

The bus started to become visible from where he stood, continously staring at the vehicle as it appeared larger, closing the distance between the individuals waiting. 

As the bus started to decelerate, the indivials who were formerly sitting started to stand up, waiting for the vehicle to come to a complete stop. The bus quickly came to a halt, and the individuals waited until the bus driver had electronically opened the doors. People started to flood into the vehicle, waiting patiently for the people ahead of them to step inside. 

As Hakyeon stepped inside the vehicle, he turned his head to the side. He quickly stretched his head to look over the seat to his side as he was still climbing up the three steps. He examined the vehicle as he continued to walk, trying to find an empty seat quickly, so the other passengers weren't delayed in sitting down themselves. He quickly spotted an empty seat next to a sleeping figure three rows down and proceeded to walk over to them.

He took a seat and sighed as he finally got to take a moment of rest. He opted to close his eyes to gain some sleep for his extended day of work, but just as he tried to get comfortable, he felt some movement from beside him. He furrowed his eyebrows at the disruption and opened his eyes to glance at the culprit. 

He's often seen in dramas how one of the main characters feel as though they've stopped breathing as soon as their eyes land on their possible love interest because of their immense beauty. He never understood how the appearance of someone can just steal your breath away after laying your eyes on them for the first time, even if dramas are often over exaggerated if he, a drama lover, must say so himself. 

He's often laid his gaze upon individuals who were rather extremely beautiful, but that's all he thought to it, they were attractive, end of story. He never looked their way for longer than three seconds.

However in this instance, as soon as his gaze was set on the figure, although he corrects himself to a man after looking at him clearly, next to him, he might've finally understood what dramas tried to show so often. He nearly forgot that he had held his breath, and inhaled deeply at the lack of oxygen flowing through his lungs. 

The first thing he had noticed was his nose, which he found odd that it was the first thing, but how could he not notice it when it is blantantly more prominent. His eyes glanced upwards, moving away from his nose, although it was still within his perception. The man's hair was slicked back, and while a few strands of hair refused to stay in place and fell ontop of his eyebrows, it showed off his forehead. His eyes then fell to the bottom half of the man's face, and he quickly bit his lip once he snapped out of his enchanted trance on the man, looking ahead quickly. 

He could feel his cheeks heat up in embarrassment at the thought of having been so enchanted by the man's features, that he momentarily forgot how eerie his actions must have been to either the man if he were to be awake, or the passengers around them.

'His lips must feel very soft.' Hakyeon thought thinking back to that glimpse of the man's plump lips. His eyes widdened in shock at himself thinking of that at such an inappropriate moment. He inhaled deeply, then let out his breath in an exasperated sigh. He brought up his hands to his cheeks after gaining his composure back, and lightly patted his cheeks to keep his thoughts in place.

He momentarily stopped his actions and quickly glanced back at the man, eyebrows furrowing at a sudden thought. 'Is he a foreigner?' The man in question had very distinct facial features that set him apart to the many other faces of Koreans. He shrugged his shoulders after thinking about it for a few seconds, since it didn't concern him. 

Considering there was still some time left before the bus arrived at its destination, Hakyeon decided to take out his phone and scroll through his social media to pass time. He didn't want to risk falling asleep and missing the stop, now that he had briefly thought about it, even if he wanted to rest to save up his energy.

As Hakyeon turned on his phone and swiped his thumb over the screen to unlock it, he noticed his notifications were going off. He guessed it had to do with Hyuk taking into account the username that popped up on his screen along with a message. He clicked on the notification and it opened an app to the chatroom he had with his friends. He quickly scanned over the unread messages, chuckling here and there at Hyuk being overdramtic and calling Hakyeon a traitor.

__

_**Hyukiwi:** Hakyeon has betrayed me_  
_**Hyukiwi:** and he just left me to Wonshik :(_  
_**Shikkie:** wtf_  
_**Shikkie:** do you not like my presence??_  
_**Hyukiwi:** no, I'd rather spend five hours doing homework_  
_**Kong:** yikes_  
_**Kong:** what did you do to hyuk to make him resort to that?_  
_**Shikkie:** nothing???_  
_**Hyukiwi:** if you don't know what you did_  
_**Hyukiwi:** you really are worse than i thought_  
_**Shikkie:** why am i being ganged up here_  
_**Shikkie:** i did not do this favor to be treated with disrespect  
_ _**Shikkie:** :((_

While he was reading the messages, he felt slight movements coming from the body beside him. Just as he was about to turn his head to see whether he woke up from the laughs leaving his mouth, and apologize if that were the case, he felt a sudden weight on his shoulder, as well as a pressure at his side. He froze in his movements, looked at his side and identified the weight as the man's head. He had leaned against Hakyeon, and rested his head on his shoulder, still sleeping soundly, undisturbed.

Hakyeon's breath hitched once he laid his eyes on the man again, quickly but carefully facing forward to avoid waking the man up. He brought his hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed yet again. He contemplated whether to wake the man up or continue letting him sleep soundly until the bus arrived at their destination. He still a bit of regret to disturb his seatmate's peaceful sleeping either way, but the man more than likely also had one or two stops left before he had to get off.

'Or maybe he already missed it.' Hakyeon thought briefly. He slowly glanced at the man and decided to wake him up once the bus had stopped at the station. 

He then resumed to occupy himself with his phone, using his arm that didnt have the weight of a body to send a quick text message to the group chat.

__

_**Yeonnie:** um_  
_**Yeonnie:** hyukkie i didn't mean to betray you like this :(_  
_**Yeonnie:** and be grateful wonshik decided to help you_  
_**Hyukiwi:** :0_  
_**Hyukiwi:** why are you texting, aren't you supposed to be working??_  
_**Woonie:** you idiot_  
_**Woonie:** he's obviously on the bus_  
_**Woonie:** use your brain_  
_**Hyukiwi:** hey  >:(_  
_**Hyukiwi:** i always use my brain_  
_**Shikkie:** you didn't for a split second_  
_**Hyukiwi:** anywaY_  
_**Hyukiwi:** Hakyeon is and forever will be a traitor to me :(_  
_**Kong:** lmao you're overreacting_  
_**Hyukiwi:** i am not!  
_ _**Hyukiwi:** look he isn't even denying it!_

 

Hakyeon let out a frustrated sigh at the youngers stubborness. Being only able to use one hand to type a message to the others was rather difficult for the boy considering he wasn't used to doing so. Much less if his friends were sending a text every five seconds. He tried to quickly type out a message, while keeping his body still as he remembered the man next to him was still in his slumber.

 

__

_**Yeonnie:** you're typing too fast!_  
_**Yeonnie:** I'm only restricted to one hand to respond_  
_**Kong:** ew_  
_**Hyukiwi:** are you..._  
_**Hyukiwi:** you can't possibly be doing that..._  
_**Woonie:** im disgusted by you hakyeon_  
_**Shikkie:** don't text us while doing thaT!  
_ _**Yeonnie:** what..._

Hakyeon stared at his screen, eyebrows scrunched in confusion. He took a short moment, thinking about what his friends thought that he was supposedly doing. It took him a few more seconds, until it dawned on him what they meant. He scrunched up his nose in disgust at the fact that they even thought he was capable of relieving himself in a crowded bus. He furiously started making a message, the tip of his thumb harshly tapping the screen.

__

_**Yeonnie:** wait gross!_  
_**Yeonnie:** why would i do that in public???_  
_**Kong:** idk why would you_  
_**Yeonnie:** istg_  
_**Yeonnie:** theres this guy whose asleep since apparently I'm a really soft pillow for him_  
_**Shikkie:** ohhhh_  
_**Shikkie:** is he cute_  
_**Yeonnie:** wonshik_  
_**Yeonnie:** beauty doesn't mean everything_  
_**Shikkie:** i know, but is he cute_  
_**Yeonnie:** immensly attractive  
_ _**Woonie:** take a picture of him_

Hakyeon scoffed in disbelief at Taekwoon's suggestion. The man had already fallen victim to Hakyeon's eerie gaze, taking a photo of him without either him knowing or his consent was much more unimaginable. Hakyeon glanced up towards the window to his side, noticing that the bus would soon arrive at the station. He quickly sent a quick reply to his friends before shutting his phone and placing back inside his pocket. 

__

_**Yeonnie:** that's creepy taek  
_ _**Yeonnie:** i gotta go anyway, I'm almost at work_

He swiftly turned towards the man, placing his hands on his shoulders and lightly shaking him, in hopes of not to scare the poor man. The man groaned at the sudden movement, scrunching up his eyebrows in irritation at the discomfort. His eyes fluttered open, staring straight ahead at the floor of the vehicle. Hakyeon tilted his head curiously as he observed the man, in a daze, gaze at the floor as though it held the world's deepest secrets. 

The man blinked repeatedly, falling out of his half asleep state, and slowly lifted his head to face Hakyeon's. Upon locking eyes with the man, Hakyeon's eyes widdened after realizing their close proximity with each other, merely inches away from bumping into each other's foreheads. He cleared his throat, already feeling heat swell up in his cheeks. He let his hands fall from his shoulders and put some space between the two, hoping the sleeping man hadn't felt so uncomfortable. He hadn't taken notice before, from how they were positioned, but the man faintly resembled an elf upon closer look, especially the tips of his ears that stood out a bit.

"Ah, the bus is almost at the next station." Hakyeon said in a soft voice as he motioned outside the window. The man slowly nodded, still under the effect of being tired. Hakyeon could feel the man's eyes piercing his body with his intense gaze, and glanced at anywhere else other than the direction of the man anxiously. Even though the man had given him such a gaze, he figured that heavy stare resided more in his state of having just woken up.

The elfman, as Hakyeon dubbed him after discovering his uncanny resemblance, turned his head towards the window and recognized the streets they were on. It would only take a minute or two to arrive at this rate. After having stared outside for a long moment, his eyes widdened as he gasped, loud enough for the passenegers seated around them to hear. 

Hakyeon looked at the man in confusion after having heard a gasp leave his mouth, and instantly remembered his questions earlier. 'I guess he really did miss his stop.' He chuckled to himself quietly as the man continously looked outside, impatiently tapping his foot. 

Suddenly he let out a breath, remembering Hakyeon who was beside him, and turned towards him, already starting to stand up as the bus started to slow down. "Thank you for waking me up! I'm sorry for bothering you with doing so." The man had said as he pouted his lips, his words filled with guilt.

Hakyeon quickly stood up, holding onto the seat as the vehicle came to a complete stop. He already started to walk out of the row he was seated in and glanced back towards the man, laughing lightly. "It was no problem. Although I'm sorry for not having woken up earlier." 

The man looked at him, quirking his eyebrow in slight confusion. They both stepped down onto the concrete from the bus carefully, starting to walk, forgeting about the direction they were heading towards. Hakyeon grinned at the man as he saw his reaction and chuckled as he explained. "Judging from your reaction eariler," he motioned towards the moving bus, refering to their exchange of words there, "I'm guessing you missed your stop. 

The man's mouth formed a small 'o' realizing what Hakyeon had meant. He suddenly exclaimed in realization, giving Hakyeon a look of guilt, and proceeded turning on his heel and walking in the opposite direction while yelling, "I'm sorry but I have to go! I would treat you to a cup of coffee as a kind of repayment but I'm late as it is!"

Hakyeon laughed at the man's antics and waved at him, shouting himself, "Don't worry about it!" The man, already feet away from him once again yelled an apology and waved back at Hakyeon. As soon as he did, he turned to face forward and hurridly started to run.

Hakyeon sighed and turned his body, facing the opposite direction, and started to walk towards his work place. He thought back to the beginning of the day, smiling to himself. It had started off rather abrupt with the sudden break up, allowing him to be completely awake from realizing how short that relationship had lasted and continued bizarrely having had someone sleep on his shoulder. He must've been very soft for the man to lean on him, and have such a blissful sleeping face. He chuckled quietly to himself, admiting to himself that the second part of the day hadn't been too terrible so far. 

The smile on his face soon faltered as he remembered the remaining of the day, taking over two shifts, and how tiring it'll be having spent most of his energy on the man on the bus. 'Well, sneaking in on eating some of the bread my co-worker makes will push me through these next few hours.'

As he continued walking in the direction towards the bakery, the building soon coming into view, his mind went back to the man on the bus, and the pronunciation of his words. 'His pronunciation is extremely well for a foreigner.' Hakyeon thought as he turned towards the building and placed his hands on the door handle, putting his weight on it to push open the door. As the bell that would often go off at the appearance of a new customer ringed, Hakyeon quickly considered, drawing out his question, 'Or is he not a foreigner despite those features.' He shrugged to himself a moment after wondering as he entered the building.


	2. Chapter 2

Upon entering the building of his workplace, the aroma of bread being baked floated around the closed place, infiltrating his nostrils. He breathed in through his nose deeply, as he closed his eyelids to concentrate on the aroma, basking in the smell of the warming bread for a moment, then exhaled in a pleased sigh. 

No matter how many times Hakyeon would enter the building where the bakery resided, he would never be fed up with smelling the bread that would either be baking currently or already out of the oven to cool down the bakers made. In most instances, an individual would get tired of either eating a certain type of food, or even as far as getting sick of just smelling it. However that was not the case for Hakyeon, at least for the sweet breads that were made in the particular bakery he worked in. He always pondered that the reason as to why he hasn't gotten tired of it recently would be either he hadn't worked long in the small establishment, or the bakers just added a small touch of magic to make it irresistible. 

He would occasionally believe the bakers were wizards for how delicious their cooking was and that they had placed a spell in the pieces of bread for others to not tire of it. Although Hakyeon would never discuss that theory of his with anyone, including with his close friends. They may joke around with each other at the most bizarre things, but the last time Hakyeon had mentioned anything remotely involving witchcraft, the boys would spit out whatever was inside their mouths, to which Hakyeon would scold them for being so unsanitary, out of disbelief and laughter. 

They would then proceed to gaze at him in suspicion whether the man had consumed some kind of alcoholic substance, to which Hakyeon would smack the back of their heads as his response, although there was no malice behind it.

Footsteps make their way out of the kitchen where the bakes were being heated up upon hearing the bell go off, signaling a new customer in most cases. "Welcome to Munchkins, may I help yo-" A rather high voice starts to ask Hakyeon, until they had realized who the man was and stopped in their tracks, the words dying on the tip of their tongue. Hakyeon opened his eyes at the sudden disturbance and glanced at the direction the voice had come from. After seconds of intently staring at each other, the owner of the voice gasped in excitement. 

"Hakyeon! What are you doing here so early?" The owner of the voice, one of his coworkers, asked the man enthusiastically at his sudden appearance. He chuckled at her excited tone upon realizing that he wasn't a customer, bringing his arm up to ruffle the top of her head. "Hello my precious," he replied to the girl, as he moved his hand side to side rapidly, ultimately ruining her hairstyle. She huffed in annoyance upon feeling strands of her hair out of place. He snickered at her now turned sour expression, stopping the movements of his hands, and lightly pat her head once, before he placed his arm back to his side. 

"You could've greeted me without messing up my hair, you goblin." The girl huffed out, lifting her arm and flicked the man's head as a form of payback. He flinced at the light flick on his forehead, and rubbed the affected spot. A smug grin was plastered on his face as he did so, and he chuckled as his eyes laid upon the girl's face, frustration evident on her features. 

"There was no need for that Riley, what did my forehead ever do to you?" Hakyeon said in a lighthearted manner. The girl in question, Riley, simply rolled her eyes playfully at his rhetorical question. "Your forehead deserves my wrath for not showing itself," she said as she crossed her arms, turning her field of vision away from him. She then hummed at a realization, and lightly hit Hakyeon's arm and spoke again. "You still haven't answered my question! Why are you here earlier than usual?"

"Hwasa called in sick, so the boss asked if I could fill in her shift," he replied, as he made his way towards the back of the counter. Riley leaned on the counter, and watched as he turned on knob on the employee's room door. He disappeared from her sight as he entered the room, walking over to his locker to take out his uniform and apron. "Luckily, I didn't have anything to do today, so I can cover her shift," he said in a louder voice, so his female companion could hear him. Although that was a lie, as he had promised Hyuk that he would help him with dancing. A feeling of guilt shot back at him at the thought. He had wanted to help him, and dance again after not being able to do so with his schedule. He sighed deeply and proceeded to take off his jacket, and placed it in his designated locker. After having one layer of clothes off, he reached his arms to his back, pulling his shirt over his head and tossed the piece of fabric in the locker. Suddenly, someone cleared their throat, and he turned his head in the direction where the sound came from, his eyes meeting Riley's. Hakyeon took note that she had a mischievous glint in her eyes, and proceeded to look down at his chest, seeing his white tank top cover his upper body.

"If you stare anymore, I'm reporting for harassment," he said as he playfully crossed his arms to hide his unexposed chest, although his words held no malice in them. Riley snorted at his words, and brought her hand up to her mouth to stifle an upcoming laugh fit. "Please, I have no desire to see such a thing. I'm a very pure being," she replied. It was Hakyeon's turn to snort loudly now at her response, and said as he snickered, "You? Pure? Come on, you have to try harder at this lying business." 

She scoffed at his words, walking up to him to lightly smack him on his chest. She mockingly laughed along as he did, and said in a sarcastic tone, "I forgot you were the king, and your words are absolute." Chuckling at her actions, he quickly ruffled her hair yet again, and then continued his objective to put on his uniform and apron. By the time he had finished buttoning up his shirt, Riley had already walked out of the room, and went into the kitchen to take out the bread in the oven. After he put and straightened up his apron, he walked out of the room, closed the door and stood behind the counter, waiting for the customers to start coming in. He glanced to his side, noticing Riley placing the breads in the display cabinet.

"You know," Riley started as she finished placing the breads on display, then continued talking as she stood straight, "Hwasa isn't sick. Its her honeymoon, or rather long delayed honeymoon." Hakyeon hummed as a response, but upon realizing what she had said, his eyes widened and he quickly turned his head towards her. He gaped at her, his mouth staying open, unable to come up with words. She laughed at his reaction, brought her hand to his chin, and closed his mouth. "You're gonna swallow a fly." 

He blinked rapidly, trying to find what exact words to say, but instead of a coherent sentence, he gasped with much enthusiasm. "I didn't know she was married! I hope she has a good time with her..." he started but stopped in his tracks and eyed Riley. She caught on to what he was asking with his eyes alone and simply said, "wife." "Yes, wife!" He repeated happily. His smile however soon fell from his face as he realized what exactly this meant for him. Riley noticed his sudden change of expression. She sighed and rubbed his back in a soothing manner, attempting to show her support. "It's going to be a week. The boss left me to tell you." She said at his unsaid question. He slumped his body and let his head droop in dejection upon hearing her words. However, upon the ring of the bell, he promtly regained his composure, and lifted his head, putting on a smile on his face for the upcoming customer. "Welcome, may I help you?"

\---

Replaying the information that was given to him the day before, his work hours would be extended for seven days as Hwasa would spend that time with her wife, unless someone filled in his evening shifts, although that was highly unlikely. Every co-worker there had long shifts to complete as it was, since there weren't many employees. The shortage of employees was never a problem however as the bakery was quite small, and there were enough bakers throughout the day to sell an infinite amount of bread. Although, when it came to even just one worker having to take some time off, the balance was thrown off, causing there to be chaos if a situation is noy handled quickly. 

Hakyeon exhaled deeply at his hectic schedule ahead. He was fortunate that his university year had barely started, allowing him not to stress too much about any schoolwork or deadlines so early in the year. As long as his work hours didn't go over his usual time to finish work, he could sleep his usual long hours blissfully. Although his usual length was less than eight hours, it was enough for him, considering he had some caffeine in the morning as well. 

As he walked to his campus, he grunted at a sudden impact from what felt as if someone jumped onto him. An arm was slung around his shoulder, bringing down Hakyeon slightly at the weight of another person using him as if he was support. He turned his head to the side, and saw Hyuk, who was currently hanging on him as though he was a monkey. "I finally caught up to you, you traitor," Hyuk said dramatically. Hakyeon clicked his tongue at the younger, and lifted his arm to brush Hyuk's off his shoulder. "If you had tightened your hold on ne, I could've choked." Hakyeon said playfully. Hyuk retreated his arm back to his side, and proceeded to walk to the university along with Hakyeon. "Take this as me being thoughtful," the younger man said in a conceited tone. The older of the two simply scoffed at the younger's response, and brought his hand up to the Hyuk's head, lightly smacking it. The younger groaned upon feeling the impact of his hit, and whined at him, "Today is not abuse Hyuk day." Hakyeon grinned at the younger's statement, and started to soothe the spot where he had smacked him as an apology. Hyuk hummed in content at his action, and laughed at the fact that Hakyeon would spoil him in many ways if he complained. 

"Why are you here alone?" Hakyeon asked after he finished soothing the younger's pain. It was rare to see Hyuk come to the university alone, he either tagged along with Taek and Wonshik, or the more common scene, had Hongbin walking along with him. To see neither of the boys with him was odd. "Shikkie slept in, thats nothing unusual, and Taek said he had to show some guy around yesterday." The boy had answered, then stayed eerily quiet. Hakyeon found it rather odd that he hadn't said anything about Hongbin. He kept his gaze on the younger, noticing how the latter would avoid looking straight into his eyes, often moving his sight back and forth repeatedly. Hakyeon decided to question as to why he was being rather unusual and opened his mouth, "What about Binnie?" 

He recalled the boy left the flat he and Hakyeon shared earlier than usual. It was a rare thing for the man to do but he figured Hongbin had some business to take care of and thought nothing of it, considering he was still half asleep when he asked where he was heading. Although thinking back to that moment, the man had seemed a tad bit irrated, and that was evident in the amount of force he used when he slammed the door.

Hyuk froze upon hearing the name, his eyes widening, although he knew the question would come. He couldn't exactly avoid the possibility since it was bizarre. "I don't know. I saw him earlier, but he gave me the cold shoulder." Hyuk had responded. Hakyeon also stopped walking, looking back at the boy and had noticed he was visibly sweating, and would not stay still. He sighed after hearing the brief explanation Hyuk had provided. "What happened?" He asked, his maternal instincts coming into light. Hyuk quickly shook his head as a response and replied with a quiet, "nothing really." He stared at the younger, concern evident in his features, and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. He rubbed his shoulder gently with his thumb, causing Hyuk to look up at him. Without using words, Hakyeon passed his message that he would help the boy with any situation in his small touches and the gentle smile present on his lips. Hyuk smiled at him, nodding, presenting that he understood the underlying message. 

Hakyeon removed his hand from Hyuk's shoulder, placing it back to his side and continued to walk, the younger following right behind him. The older then gasped dramatically, and turned to Hyuk, his hand on his chest. Hyuk stared at the older in confusion as to why he spontaneously started to act. He raised his eyebrow at his actions, bobbing his head to signal the older to go on. "You'll need to plan my funeral child. I'm working twice as much this week," Hakyeon said dramatically, as he wiped a fake tear from his eye. Hyuk rolled his eyes at him and he grinned at his friend's antics. He moved to Hakyeon's side, and brought his arm on his shoulder yet again, dragging him to the campus. "Make enough money to put food on our table," Hyuk joked along. "Do I get no sympathy from my good friends," Hakyeon scoffed after listening to the younger's response. Hyuk shook his head to the sides, quickly glancing to Hakyeon and laughed loudly upon witnessing the look of disbelief and digust on his face. He let go of him, and hit his back playfully. 

"Don't overreact. You know I love you." Hyuk had tried to say with a neutral face, but failed, breaking into snickers midway. Hakyeon groaned loudly, throwing his head back, at his reaction. He brought both his arms in front of the younger, holding onto him as he relaxed his body, shifting all his weight to the other. Hyuk nearly fell backwards upon feeling someone hang off him and whined loudly. "You're not five, let go of me or we'll both fall." Hyuk grabbed Hakyeon's arm, and pulled him forward. He hunched his back and took hold of Hakyeon's thighs, lifting him up so he could carry him on his back. "Yet you give me a piggyback ride instead. You're adorable," Hakyeon chuckled at the thought that the younger could threaten him but in the end do the opposite. He squeaked once Hyuk had decided to start running with the older on his back. "You better hold on or you'll fall of then!" He exclaimed, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "And I'm not adorable. I'm handsome." Hyuk retorted. 

\---

The bell had rung, signaling the start of the long awaited lunch. Hakyeon picked up all his belongings and exited the classroom, making his way to the cafeteria to see what was available to eat. He stared at the menu for a short moment, before he decided to get some noodles. He wasn't necessarily really hungry at the moment, and chose to buy food later in the day. He would just ask Riley to cover for him until he came back with food considering his work schedule.

After having bought his cup of noodles and a bottle of water, he walked outside the cafeteria. He craned his head to his left and right, until he spotted a familiar brunette and raven haired male. He started to make his way to the two, their voices starting to become more audible as he got closer. 

"You mean to tell me, you got yourself a girlfriend, but didn't consult me?" The ravenhead, Wonshik, exclaimed with his hands in the air in exaggeration. Hakyeon watched the scene play out as he set down his cup and bottle, and set himself down on the seat next to Wonshik. "I have been betrayed. I now know what you felt with Hakyeon's betrayal." He said overdramatically, as he feigned a look of pain.

Hakyeon scoffed at his friend's comment, softly hitting his arm. "I'll let you off easy this time," Hakyeon started, giving a slight glare towards Wonshik, before diverting his attention back to the youngest of the three. "But you, Han Sanghyuk, managed to convince someone to date you?" He questioned as he pointed his index finger towards the man in question. "It would be more likely for dogs and cats to rain down on us than this," he said in astonishment. Wonshik roared with laughter at the older's teasing whike Hyuk scoffed as a response. He rolled his eyes in annoyment and said, his tone filled woth sarcasm, "Surprisingly I am capable of many things. Anyway, I didn't tell you because of this exact reason." Hakyeon observed the younger, taking notice of his facial expression turning slightly sour after a few seconds. He glanced at Wonshik, who was already eyeing the younger in confusion and concern washed over his face. He slightly nugged him, resulting to Wonshik turning his head towards the older in surprise. They stared at each other for a brief moment, and Wonshik quickly understood was the older was quietly asking his with his gaze, and shrugged as a response. The table had stayed silent for a span of time, causing the two to become uneasy at the younger's lack of communication. 

Just as Hakyeon was about to open his lips to ask Hyuk as to why he seemed conflicted, he had raised his voice upon seeing two familiar faces, along with one that was unknown. "Binnie! Taek!" The younger had shouted as he shot up from his seat and waved at the male who had distinctive dimples adorning his face, and the tall male who at times resembled a feline. Both Hakyeon and Wonshik turned their bodies to get their companions in view. 

Taekwoon could be seen a few meters away from their position sighing exasperatedly while held his head in his hands. He seemed to have moved his mouth, talking to the unfamilar face that was beside him. Hongbin had already sprinted to the table the three were at and sat down next to Wonshik, setting down his food and placed the man in the middle of Hakyeon and him. Hakyeon raised his eyebrow at Hongbin suspiciously, recalling the incident with Hyuk in the morning. However he disregarded that thought, reasoning to himself that the two could just momentarily be experiencing a rough patch. It wasn't uncommon within his group of friends to occasionally get into fights, but each of them apologize and reconcile within a reasonable amount of time when such things would occur. Of course, it would occasionally take the coerce of someone not involved to convince them to cease their stubborness. He shut his eyes and sighed, hoping the two would be able to come to an understanding to what evere kind of problem they were experiencing. 

"Everyone, this is Lee Jaehwan. He's the guy I mentioned I was gonna show around yesterday." A soft voice had spoken, the owner of it being obvious to Hakyeon despite his eyes being shut. He opened his eyes and turned slightly behind to where the sound had originated from, only for his eyes to settle upon a not so unfamiliar face. Hakyeon's eyes were fixed on the man Taekwoon had introduced for a moment too long, that had his friends stare at him in question. "Ah!" The man, who was apparently refered to as Jaehwan, let out a strangled sound in recognition once he set his gaze on the eldest. "It's you from the bus!" He exclaimed, a smile forming on his plush lips. 

"Its the elf!" Hakyeon had shouted out, unable to filter his words in time, as he raised himself from his seat. He heard snickers come from the table, and he burrowed his eyebrows in confusion as to what the three boys behind him found so hilarous. It was when he laid his gaze on Taekwoon's expression of bewilderment that he realized what he had just called Jaehwan. He cursed at himself for his brain momentarily short circuiting and not allowing him to form a normal sentence. "I mean," Hakyeon had stuttered out in embarrassment trying to come up with an elaborate excuse as to why he refered to the man as an elf without coming out as a creep. He could feel the heat rush up to his face at the thought of what the man was thinking of this first impression. While he was trying to find the right words to say, an unexpected laugh left the stranger's mouth, and he crouched down, holding his stomach. The five boys stared in surprise at the man's reaction. Hakyeon softly released a confused laugh at the man's actions, and rubbed his nape in embarrassment. As the man's laughs started to die down, he wiped a tear threatening to escape from the corner of his eye and peered at Hakyeon. 

"I've been called a fairy countless times, but elf is a new one." Jaehwan chuckled. Taekwoon sighed and motioned for Jaehwan to sit down beside Hyuk, while he sat at the end. Hakyeon promptly sat back down as the two made their way to sit, and said uneasily, "I'm sorry about that. I don't usually say something out of the ordinary like this." Hongbin laughed loudly at the statement that had just left Hakyeon's mouth and proceeded by claiming, "This is the norm for him. You better get used to it." Hakyeon frowned and brought his arm behind Wonshik to reach Hongbin and smacked his head. "Stop spilling lies," Hakyeon clicked his tongue as Hongbin doubled over on the table, grasping his head as he groaned at the unwelcomed pain. 

"As you just witnessed, our Hakyeonie is quite a violent person." Hyuk whispered to Jaehwan as he pointed towards Hakyeon. "Shut up Hyuk, you have no room to say that," Wonshik said in amusement. Taekwoon sighed at his friends antics, quickly regretting having introduced his friend to the, wild animals as Taekwoon dubbed his friends, that he hung out with. He tapped on Jaehwan's shoulder in an attempt to gain his attention from his friends bickering. Once Jaehwan turned to him, after smiling from the group's antics, and gave him his full attention.

"I'm sorry for their behavior." Taekwoon said apologetically. Jaehwan shook his head as he smiled, "Don't apologize. This is actually fun." Taekwoon smiled softly at his friend and decided to quickly cut in the constant bickering at the table to introduce his friends to Jaehwan. Upon making his friends close their mouths and give their attention for a short time, he began by introducing Jaehwan, proceeding to introduce his friends individually. "The man child on your left is called Hyuk." Taekwoon started only to be interrupted by Wonshik. "He's no man child anymore. He's a man man now." Taekwoon glared at Wonshik and questioned as to what a 'man man' specifically meant. "Wait, no don't tell me. I got an idea." Taekwoon quickly said before Wonshik could reveal his explaination, resulting in Wonshik to frown. Taek moved his attention over to a frowning Hongbin, shortly pondering as to why his expression turned sour but then proceeded his introductions.

"The guy across from me who has a voice as deep as the grand canyon despite his face is Hongbin. The guy next to him, to continously interrupted me is Wonshik." Taekwoon said, emphasizing the 'continously' in annoyance.  
Jaehwan chuckled at his tone directed to the man refered to as Wonshik. "And he's someone you should ignore." Taekwoon said in a teasing manner once it was Hakyeon's turn to be introduced. Hakyeon gaped at his friend, unable to form any words at the unexpected turn he took. "You'll never leave me in peace, will you?" Hakyeon rhetorically said, feigning a look of pain on his face. Taekwoon simply chuckled at his response, and quickly said, for Jaehwan's sake, "That's Hakyeon, the one who gave you a cute nickname." 

"Oh speaking of, Jaehwan mentioned Hakyeon as 'the guy on the bus.' Do you think he was that, as Hakyeon put it, 'immensely attractive' man he saw there?" Hongbin asked to no one in particular, using his fingers to quote 'immensly attractive' once he remembered his question since the start of the elf fiasco. Hyuk let out a sound of realization and was about to give his own answer to Hongbin until Hakyeon suddenly errupted. "It wasn't him!" He lied, although he felt no guilt in doing so to avoid his friends endless teasing. His companions gazed at him in shock at him raising his voice at them at first, until realization dawned upon them for his sudden outburst. The four boys glanced at Hakyeon then looked at each other after, mischief flowing in their eyes once they had seen his face flushed scarlet. The remaining newcomer simply smiled in confusion at the brief quiet atmosphere that had ensumed the table, concluding that it'd be best to not question the past three minutes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lol after like two weeks, i finally got to writing chapter two. With school staring again, trying to update becomes stressing. I ended it a little bit shorter than the previous but oh well. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy reading.


	3. Chapter 3

"Wait," Hakyeon said in the middle of the group's conversation, a dawn of realization swaying into his mind. "You're not a foreigner?" The five boys halted their conversation briefly, and gave their attention to Hakyeon's question. Wonshik turned his head to view Jaehwan after registering the question and studied his face for a moment. "Now that you mention it, he does look like he isn't fully Korean." Wonshik uttered as he rubbed his chin. "I had the same thoughts when I first met him," Taekwoon chuckled as he momentarily remembered his first meeting with the boy.

"I get that a lot. Sorry to disappoint, but I'm fully Korean," Jaehwan said cheekily. Hakyeon slumped at the thought that his initial suspicions were wrong, but shook off the feeling once he realized he wasn't the only one who thought so. Wonshik had taken notice of Hakyeon's dejected structure, chuckling quiet enough for the others aside from him to hear. Hakyeon perked up upon hearing a soft chuckle next to him, and glanced to his side, catching that the culprit of it was Wonshik. He rolled his eyes at him and subtly pinched his friend's arm in annoyance. Wonshik flinced, causing the others, who were caught up in their conversation, to notice something occurred with the deep voiced male. Wonshik brought his hand up, and shook it, telling the others that it was nothing. Once they got the message, they continued their conversation with each other.

Wonshik couldn't go without giving Hakyeon the same treatment he gave him, and quickly tried to pinch his hand. Hakyeon took notice of Wonshik's movements, and took his hand in his and slammed it under the table. Upon the impact, Wonshik groaned in pain, and brought his hand from under the table to soothe it with his uninjured one. The rest of the boys had observed the whole exchange and laughed at Wonshik's pain. "You shouldn't get on Hakyeon's bad side or you'll suffer like Shikkie," Hyuk whispered to Jaehwan upon calming down in his laughing fit. Hakyeon had managed to catch his name coming out of Hyuk's mouth and retorted sarcastically, "What do you mean bad side, I only have a good side." Hongbin snickered at Hakyeon's statement, shaking his head in disappointment. 

"Compared to Binnie here, your good side is nonexistent," Hyuk playfully said, deciding to drag his friend into the conversation as well. Hongbin shot his head up upon hearing his name. He burrowed his eyebrows in confusion, and sneered, "Don't you start bringing me into your mess." Hyuk laughed at his response. While he was laughing, he took notice of Jaehwan sitting there awkwardly, seeming as if he didn't know whether to intervene or not. As he was about to open his mouth to say something to the newcomer, Taekwoon spoke up after staying quiet for a long while. "Don't worry, he's not actually this quiet normally." The rest of the boys at the table were momentarily perplexed at who Taekwoon was talking about, until they heard a small chuckle coming from Jaehwan. Taekwoon detected the three boy's eyes on him, and looked up towards them. He took note of their expression, which were contorted with confusion. He sighed slightly before procceding to talk.

"Yes, I am talking about Jaehwan. Who else would it, you idiots." He barked out. Hyuk snickered at Taekwoon's tone with the other three. The three boy's simply huffed out at the resemblance to being treated like small children. Jaehwan spoke up for the first time in a while, saying in an exasperated tone, "Oh I almost forgot, I have to go apply to stay at the dorms in a bit." Hakyeon chuckled, faintly remembering the time on the bus, where Jaehwan had also seemed to forget about something he had to do. "You still haven't done that?" Taekwoon asked in concern at his friend's forgetful nature. Jaehwan shoom his head as a response, causing Taekwoon to sigh in disbelief. He figured he would show Jaehwan to where to ask so he can dorm in the university, but was beat by the youngest. "I can show you to where you have to ask." Hyuk suggested. Jaehwan cocked his head at the youngest in confusion as to why someone who is still a stanger would offer to help. Taekwoon had also glanced at Hyuk with a puzzeled expression. 

"Don't you have class soon?" Wonshik questioned. Hyuk glanced briefly at Wonshik after hearing his question and shook his head. He quickly stopped after thinking about it longer, and smiled cheekily. "I mean I do, but it's alright if I'm late." 

"You don't have to, I can find my own way." Jaehwan spoke up once he found about that the younger had class. He heard someone snicker next to him, and he turned to head, only to come face to face with Taekwoon. "I beg to differ. You almost got lost going to the cafeteria." Hakyeon laughed softly at Taekwoon's statement. He couldn't blame Jaehwan for gettinf lost in an environment he was not used to yet. It was something natural, but he couldn't help the small laughs that would escape, imagining a confused Jaehwan. Both Wonshik and Hongbin had noticed the oldest laughing periodically. They both glanced at the each other, and grinned once they figured out why exactly. Wonshik nudged Hakyeon to gain his attention, which had worked resulting in him to stare at him, waiting for Wonshik to talk. 

"Which is it?" Wonshik started. Hakyeon stared at him in confusion, waiting for him to continue only for Hongbin to finish his sentence in a quiet voice, although it was loud enough for Hakyeon's ears to catch. "Is he cute or handsome?" Hakyeon groaned loudly in aggravation, and he slammed his head down on the table. He could already feel the heat rush to his cheeks in distress, and he decided to try and hide it by using his arms to cover his head. His reaction did not go unnoticed by neither the two responsible for his annoyance, nor the three boys across the table. Hyuk and Taekwoon looked at Wonshik and Hongbin, waiting for an answer as to why Hakyeon appeared so bashful. The two in question quickly glanced at Jaehwan, as if that could answer everything, and while Hyuk quickly understood why, soon cackling at his oldest friend, Taekwoon was just as confused as Jaehwan was. 

After regaining his composure, Hakyeon untangled his limbs from his heas and lifted his head to be on eye level with the others. He promptly shot Wonshik and Hongbin a look of displeasure, and brought his hand up to his neck, miming the action of a knife sliding across their necks with his thumb. The two merely laughed at the oldest's actions, causing him to frown. He then turned towards the other three, quickly becoming aware of Hyuk's knowing glances as to what got him so flustered. He rolled his eyes at the younger, and then spoke up. "Think about it Taek. Hyuk can show Jaehwan around while you take a rest." Taekwoon briefly thought about it for a moment, and then turned to Jaehwan. "Can I trust you not to walk around on your own?" Taekwoon asked after realizing the idea wasn't so bad. However that was only if Jaehwan behaved himself, which was unlikely. But having Hyuk with him will keep Taekwoon at ease that his friend isn't getting lost. Jaehwan smiled at his friend and nodded as a response. Hakyeon cooed at how caring Taekwoon was of his friend, which gained Hongbin to disrupt the moment by retching. 

Taekwoon rolled his eyes playfully at his two friend's antics. "I just caught a sight of Hakyeon acting like our parent again." Wonshik joked. Hyuk snickered and said joyfully, "Good thing Binnie got him out of his zone." "You two are the best children ever." Hakyeon responded, his voice oozing sarcasm. Hyuk and Hongbin nodded vigorously at what he had said. "Hyuk, you will talk Jae to apply for a dorm right?" Taekwoon asked after his friends finished their harmless conversation. Hyuk perked up upon hearing his name, and nodded. Taekwoon sighed in relief that he could partially trust the youngest in this simple task.

"Oh! Maybe you'll room with me!" Hyuk said excitedly as he remembered that he did not have a roomate yet. "That's right, you still have the dorm to yourself." Wonshik said once he recalled the youngest's rooming situation. "Obviously, after the countless flings my roomate brought, he was kicked out." Hyuk said in discomfort at the memories of having to spend restless nights hearing the squeaking of the bed and it hitting the wall. Hongbin laughed bitterly at his response, earning a glance from Wonshik, Taekwoon and Hakyeon. Hongbin, who was to occupied staring holes at his food, didn't noticethe stares that were being directed at him. The three stared at each other, unaware of what was going on with Hongbin. "Jaehwannie! You have to promise me you won't do that or we can't room together!" Hyuk suddenly gasped at the possibility that he might have to go through it all over again, considering Jaehwan was fairly attractive to gain a lot of flings. Jaehwan snorted at the younger's concern and shook his head at the possibility. "That won't be a problem." Hyuk sighed a breath of relief, although that was short lived as Hakyeon spoke up. "You should make the brat suffer." Taekwoon leaned on the table and smacked Hakyeon's head lightly at the joke, which earned a laugh or two from the rest of the boys. 

"We might as well go and let you apply for the dorms right now." Hyuk said as he stood up from his seat. There were only a few minutes till lunch would end, and he figured they would get that errand done quickly so at the very least, Jaehwan wouldn't be late to his classes. He paid little to no mind if he missed his next class as he was doing fairly well in it, and skipping a day wouldn't cause him to be overwhelmed in work. He started to pull Jaehwan's arm to get him to stand, which he did rather quickly. "I'll see you later then Taek." Jaehwan said as he waved at him and the others at the table. He started to walk along with Hyuk as the others waved goodbye at the two, and entered the building, off to apply to stay at a dorm.

"Are you sure Hyuk was a right choice?" Wonshik asked warily towards Taekwoon. He sighed dejectedly and responded softly, "What's the worst that could happen. They burn the university down?" Hakyeon chuckled at the idea, considering with just the youngest of the group, it was possible, and adding Jaehwan, who according to Taekwoon, he was just as worse as Hyuk. "I heard from Gongchan that his friends are gonna throw a party this Saturday. Wanna go?" Hongbin spoke up suddenly after having swallowed the food he had been glaring at earlier. Hakyeon's face brightened up at the idea of going to a party to wind down from the stress of university and work. However, once his mind was occupied with the word 'work' he recalled he had to cover not only his usual shift, but one of his coworkers. His schedule was always different on the weekends, as he went to work early in the morning, but taking into consideration his co-worker's schedule, he might not have time to go. "I don't know if I'll go. I'll have to ask my boss what time he needs me to cover one of the other's employee's shift." He responded. Hongbin nodded at him, knowing the dilemma he was in. "Oh right, you have longer shifts for the week. Tell me when you get home if you can." Hongbin said. Taekwoon scoffed at his response, "You just need him as your ride don't you." Hakyeon shook his head in disbelief after Hongbin had answered that he did and that he couldn't bear to lose his chauffeur. That earned a loud laugh from Wonshik, and he held his hand in the air for Hongbin to slap. Hongbin noticed the hand hanging in the air took the chance to high five Wonshik. "Can you believe this is how I am repaid for taking care of them as my children Woonie?" Hakyeon asked in disbelief. Taekwoon chuckled softly at his best friend's predicament. 

The end of their lunch break had come, and they had start walking to their next classes. Taekwoon had mentioned that he would inform Jaehwan and Hyuk once he ran into them about the party. He thought it was a good chance for Jaehwan to get to know other people aside from his circle of friends, and he had heard some people who were similar to Jaehwan in a sense would attend the party. Parties aren't Taekwoon's cup of tea, but Gongchan's parties could be considered tame if they were compared to other out of control ones by a few of his acquaintances. Although just with his friends alone, even Gongchan's can turn berserk, although it was rather entertaining. 

\---

School had ended, after the long and torturous hours of waiting for the weekend to start. Hakyeon had gone to Munchkins as soon as he was let out, still unused to arriving at work so early. Similar to the day before, he had walked in and was instantly hit with the smell of fresh bread being taken out of the oven. One of the bakers, Namjoon, had appeared instead of Riley. He waved his hand as a greeting towards the other once he walked out of the kitchen to see who entered the building, only for it to be one of the employees.

Considering Hakyeon was hoping his boss would be in the building so he could ask him about his shift tomorrow but wasn't, his other hope was to ask Riley to pass the message onto him. It just so happened that she would come into work a few hours later instead today. As he was pondering that he could just call his boss on his break, he heard something hit the floor. He turned his head and saw the empty plate on the floor. Namjoon was fortunate enough that he had already placed all the bread in the display case and avoided ruining it instead. He chuckled at his clumsiness and bent down to pick up the plate. Once he did, he handed it over towards Namjoon. "Sorry about that." Namjoon said apologetically. Hakyeon grinned at him and shook his head. "The good thing is the baked goods didn't get wasted." 

Namjoon smiled at him as a response, his dimples appearing on his face as he did. "How is it going with that girl?" Namjoon asked, trying to start a conversation with the older as they waited for costumers to rush in. Hakyeon burrowed his eyebrows in confusion as to what the other was talking about, but quickly understood. He had already gotten used to being single, that he forgot that until yesterday, he was still dating that girl. He sheepishly smiled and responded as he rubbed his head in embarrassment. "We broke up yesterday." Namjoon blinked once, twice, thrice at Hakyeon until he snorted upon realizing that they had only dated for two weeks and already broke up. "That was a short relationship." He said in between snorts as he brought his hand to his mouth to muffle them. Hakyeon rolled his eyes playfully at him. "My shortest yet. I'm aiming for five days next time." Hakyeon said in a joking manner. Namjoon laughed at his words, until he grinned mischievously at Hakyeon. 

Hakyeon had a suspicion that the mischievous grin on Namjoon's face could only mean trouble, and his suspicions were correct. "A little birdie told me you creepily stared at some hottie on the bus." Hakyeon mentally contemplated whether he would end whoever told Namjoon, and came to the conclusion that he would be better off without them, despite having no idea who it was. He brought his hand to his head and rubbed his temple in irriation at the constant teasing. "I was not being a creep, unlike you who always stares at that Jin kid whenever he comes here." Hakyeon said smugly. He stared at Namjoon, observing his face turn scarlet in embarrassment. He felt proud that he managed to fluster someone after constantly being targeted. 

"Have you gotten the courage to ask him for his number?" Hakyeon asked after a moment of enjoying his victory. Namjoon stayed still for a brief period, and then shook his head as a response. Hakyeon sighed, he brought his hand on Namjoon's shoulder and said, "I don't think he would decline in that. I mean, I've seen the way he looks at you." Whenever that boy would enter the bakery, Hakyeon would notice how his gaze would always wander towards Namjoon when he thought no one was looking. But being bored in a bakery where the customers were slow to come in, he took notice of things, especially from regulars who would come very often, like Jin. Namjoon's face contorted in worry upon hearing Hakyeon's words. He was cautious of what to do and very hesitant. As Hakyeon was waiting for a response from Namjoon, he noticed movement outside the shop. He focused on the figure, quickly noticing it was Jin. He mentally chuckled at how safe the two were playing when it was obvious they were crushing on each other, but yet they remained oblivious.

As if right on cue, the bell rang, signaling the arrival of a new customer and it was the person in their discussion entered the building. Hakyeon glanced over to the front door and greeted Jin, earning a response in return. Namjoon had simply stayed still, until he turned to walk back into the kitchen quickly. Hakyeon rested his chin on his palm, and noticed the small frown that appeared on the handsome man's face. He cleared his throat, gaining the attention of Jin, and motioned him to come over to him. Jin stared at him in confusion, but walked over nonetheless, curious as to what the other wanted to say. "Don't mind Namjoon, he's just really shy." Hakyeon had started to say once Jin was within an earshot away. Jin cocked his head in confusion since he saw Namjoon talk with Hakyeon comfortably before he had entered the bakery. 

Sure, he had been standing outside for a few minutes, contemplating whether he should enter or not, which earned him suspicious stares from passersbys, but he was not a creep. "He didn't seem shy when he was talking to you." Jin mumbled. Hakyeon chuckled and asked, "Did it seem like he was really comfortable with me from outside?" Jin froze up upon hearing the last words which in turn made Hakyeon laugh. "He didn't notice. You're safe." Hakyeon said as he pat his shoulder from across the counter. Jin let out a breathe of relief. It was humiliating enough that someone had caught him standing outside eerily, and if the person happened to be the main source of his affection, he would mark the bakery as a forbidden place to enter. 

As Namjoon stayed in the kitchen, occupying himself with baking new batches of bread, Hakyeon and Jin stayed in the same spot, talking to each other about meaningless things. They had spent the last few minutes making up small talk until Hakyeon brought up a question. For the last few minutes that had passed, he was strategically attempting to come up with a plan for the two oblivious men to meet and talk. "You seem like you need something to destress yourself with. How about going to a friend of mine's party?" Jin raised an eyebrow at Hakyeon before chuckling out, "We might be heading to the same party then. It's Gongchan's right?" Hakyeon nodded as a response. Jin continued his sentence as he chuckled, "A friend of mine knows him pretty well, and he invited me." 

Minutes passed as the two spent a moment talking within themselves. Before they had noticed, twenty minutes had passed, and Jin needed to leave as he had something he had to attend to. Before he had left, Hakyeon stopped him in his tracks, so he could give him some bread. He disregarded Jin when he offered to pay for them as he didn't need to get them for free and Hakyeon simply replied, "Your crush in the kitchen is making enough to compensate them." 

Jin blushed when Hakyeon had mentioned Namjoon as his crush and promptly thanked Hakyeon before scurrying out of the bakery, baked good in his hand. Hakyeon chuckled after seeing his reaction, and then yelled at Namjoon that the coast was clear to step out of the kitchen once Jin was out of sight. Namjoon stepped out of the kitchen two minues later, more bread on the plate that had once fallen and he placed it in the display. He put the plate down before sighing. Hakyeon checked the front door to see if anyone was a potential customer from the outside. When he came to the conclusion that they wouldn't have someone come in for a few minutes at least, he quickly went to the employee's room to make a call, promptly excusing himself momentarily from the baker. 

He dialed his boss' number and waited until he had picked up. The man on the other side had answered, unknown who was calling as he did not check. "Sir, I called to know what my schedule would be tomorrow." Hakyeon asked. The man on the other side stayed quiet for a brief moment before speaking up. He had told Hakyeon that considering he was going to double up on shifts for the next week, he would let Hakyeon have the weekend off. Hakyeon sighed in relief that he could destress himself before he had to spend an exhausting week at work. He thanked his boss for allowing him to take the weekend off, and hung up upon saying goodbye. After having finished his call, he walked out of the room, and shut it. He noticed Namjoon was just standing behind the counter with a bored expression on his face. He walked up behind him, although that was a bad idea as as soon as he took a breathe, Namjoon shrieked. He stared at him, struggling not to laugh as Namjoon stared at him with his eyes wide open. He cleared his throat and took a moment to recompose himself before lightly punching Hakyeon's shoulder. Hakyeon couldn't keep in his giggles from Namjoon's reaction, and they escaped his mouth. 

"Sorry, I forgot you're easily scared." Hakyeon said in amusement, which caused Namjoon to roll his eyes at him. Hakyeon then remembered what he was originally going to ask Namjoon, or rather convince him to attend, so his small operation of getting him and Jin to talk and get to know each other more can go underway. Even if they would be awkward with each other at the party, he would give the both of them a small push in the right direction. "I nearly forgot. Do you want to go to a party tomorrow?" He asked, with a hint of mischief in his eyes. Namjoon eyed Hakyeon in suspicion after noticing the look in his eyes, but nodded nonetheless. "Why not. A couple of drinks or two will relax me." Namjoon said. "Jin will also be there." Hakyeon added quickly. He eyed Namjoon's expression and noticed the hesitation form on his face after. Hakyeon sighed deeply, and brought an arm around Namjoon. "You already agreed. I'm going to drag you there if I have too." Hakyeon said in a threatening tone. Namjoon looked towards him, and laughed at his declaration before nodding. "I'll go." He said. Hakyeon smiled at the baker, and let go of his shoulder, dropping his arm back to his side. "This might be your big chance to hit him up." Hakyeon stated with a smile. His words earned a sheepish grin from the baker. "Unless my clusmy ass destroys something and makes him stay away." Namjoon said, in a joking manner. Hakyeon chuckled, considering the baker did have a well known reputation as 'the king of destruction,' however he doubted that would be an enormous obstacle for Jin. 

\---

The afternoon had gone by, rather slowly in Hakyeon's opinion. The baker, Namjoon, had finished his shift half and hour ago, and Riley had come in just as he was getting ready to leave. She had noticed how lethargic Hakyeon was, and snickered at his state. The sound earned a glare from Hakyeon, which resulted in the girl to stop laughing, although a smile never left her lips. Hakyeon had updated her on his two days of bliss and freedom before having to continue with his long work hours. She had patted his back in a comforting manner, telling him to enjoy those two days as the weekend would always pass by within a flash. As the two were talling amongst themselves, and playfully joking with each other, a ring went off. The door to the bakery had been opened, and both the employees had turned to see who had entered, as well as to greet them. Hakyeon's voice stopped in its tracks when he had seen the familiar face of the customer, the man he had mistaken not only as a foreigner, but an elf, wondering what he was doing at the bakery.

Jaehwan had recently arrived to the city from what Taekwoon had told him, and he figured he had other business to attend to before exploring the city that he lived in long ago. As Hakyeon was lost in his thoughts, Jaehwan stepped up to the register, and stood in front of Hakyeon. He opened his mouth to ask a question that made Hakyeon snap back to reality and snort in disbelief. "Can I get an espresso?"


	4. Chapter 4

"I'm sorry?" Hakyeon asked after having recomposed himself, momentarily thinking that his ears had been playing tricks. He observed as Jaehwan had opened his mouth to respond to Hakyeon's question, but stopped himself after coming to a realization. A blush started to creep up on his cheeks in embarrassment, resulting Jaehwan to hold his head in his hands to hide. After a moment of taking a deep breath to calm down, he dropped his hands back to his sides, although Hakyeon noticed the tips of his ears had turned scarlet red. Hakyeon quietly chuckled to himself upon witnessing that. "This isn't the coffee shop, is it?" Jaehwan asked, although he already knew the answer to his question from the small snickers the two employee's gave.

"No. It is right across from us." Hakyeon responded as he pointed to the door, the bulding across from them being the actual coffee shop. Jaehwan followed where the end of his finger was pointing to, sighing deeply at his simple mistake. "How cute," Riley murmured softly as she observed Jaehwan, eyeing him from the top of his head to his waist, considering the counter stood in her field of vision. Hakyeon had heard her comment, and mentally agreed with her. "Shit," Jaehwan cursed under his breath as he turned back to face the two employees. He rubbed his nape in embarrassment, as he averted his eyes from either of the two, and stared the counter as though it was the most interesting thing in the world. "I came here in a hurry and didn't bother to check which shop was a coffee shop." He chuckled nervously, gazing outside to the actually shop that sold coffee's. He lifted his head slightly, and shyly gazed at Hakyeon and Riley, a slight tint of pink adorning his cheeks. 

"Don't worry, that's bound to happen with a bakery and coffee shop so close to each other." Riley commented with a small smile on her lips as she shook her hands in the air, dismissing his mistake. Hakyeon closed his eyes and softly laughed behind his fist, which gained Jaehwan's attention. He opened them and noticed the nervous expression forming on Jaehwan's face, along with his body seeming to have become tense and stiff, and he sheepishly smiled. "I've done it before too." Hakyeon started, and stopped for a brief moment to snort at the memory before continuing. "Although I mistook a game store with a grocery store." 

It had been a simple mistake at the time, having not paid attention to his surroundings, he momentarily forgot where the video game store had been, and had stayed in place for many years. He remembered walking into the building, and feeling a fresh gush of air from the air condition, his hair being swept back. He would walk in circles, trying to find where the games were placed, and thought for half and hour how they changed the layout of the store, along with making it much bigger. It was until his saw Taekwoon walking around, and made his way to him to ask him what he was doing there, which earned a look of disbelief from the younger, along with if he was getting the hottest new game that had just come out. That one question had earned a snicker from the younger, and he had pulled him by his wrist to where all the fresh vegetables were. He had took hold of Hakyeon's head, and firmly shoved his head in front of the avocados. The elder stayed in that same spot for nearly a minute, processing the fact that he was in the wrong store extremely slow. It was an experience that none of his friends let him live down for quite a while.

Riley snapped her head towards Hakyeon, her eyes widdened in shock and let out a breath of disbelief at how unbelievable the idea of getting a game and grocery store mixed up. Jaehwan's stiffness from worry quickly subsided after the comment from Hakyeon, the expression on his face had seemed to turn into one of momentarily relief, until he broke out into a cheeky smile. "How does that even happen?" Jaehwan said, trying to stiffle the giggles that dared to escape. Hakyeon snorted at the younger's attempt to stop himself from laughing, and proceeded to joke around. "My mind was blank aside from the game I wanted to get." At that point, Jaehwan could not keep a composed fave and started to break out into a small fit of laughs. Midway laughing, he started to wheeze, which earned a chuckle or two from Hakyeon. Soon, the sound of laughter started to die down, and as Riley had observed quietly, although it felt more as if she was third wheeling, there was an extended moment of silence. Both the boys in the building continued to look at each other, soft smiles decorating their faces. 

Having had enough of the uncomfortable silence, and standing there awkwardly, Riley loudly cleared her throat, quickly gaining both Jaehwan and Hakyeon's attention. They bothed gazed at her expectantly, and Riley thought that it might have been better to just leave the two in their own world instead. "Sorry, the silent flirting was too strong for me," Riley playfully said as she swiftly made her way over to the kitchen to avoid the situation. A cough broke the silence after she had excused herself from the two. Riley hummed to herself in curiosity as to whether they repeated the silent gazing towards each other. As Riley peeked her head out of the doorway to view what their reactions were, and to fulfil her curiosity, she noticed Hakyeon's face had flushed a deep scarlet, along with the other man, who she did not know what his name was, was letting out a nervous laugh. A glint of mischief shone in her eyes at the scene in front of her. She decided to leave the two, and stepped away from the doorway, walking further into the kitchen.

"She's not wrong, you might as well be an enchanter with how you took my breath away," Jaehwan spoke up in a flirtatious tone, and winked at Hakyeon. Hakyeon stared briefly at Jaehwan in confusion until his words processed through his brain. He could feel his cheeks, that had already lost their redness from Riley's earlier comment, started to burn up again in embarrassment. Hakyeon laughed at the other's attempt at flirting. "Oh my god, I actually hate you," Hakyeon gasped out in between laughs. Jaehwan smiled as he watched the older's reaction, being hypnotized by his laughter. Jaehwan then grunted in realization of his original business, and started, "Oh shit, I forgot I still have things to do. I'll see you tomorrow?" Hakyeon halted his laughter, and nodded at Jaehwan's question, proceeding to say his goodbyes to the younger. "

"Don't forget where the coffee shop actually is now!" Hakyeon yelled as Jaehwan had one foot out of the door. He turned back to Hakyeon, and gave him a thumbs up, signing that he understood. He watched as Jaehwan ran out of the bakery, and stopped on the sidewalk until he proceeded to walk across the street to the coffee shop. Hakyeon smiled to himself, and stared at the building across from him, staring off into space. He dozed out of reality but quickly snapped back as he shrieked in surprise at the sudden boom of a voice. The owner of the voice peeked her head through the doorway, and stared at Hakyeon, perplexed and confused. "Are you okay?" Riley asked in concern. Hakyeon simply nodded. He put his hand over his chest and could feel his heart beating rapidly. He briefly attempted to calm himself after that small scare. After having accomplished that he asked Riley what she had needed. "Can you take out some flour from the stockroom?"

-

It was well into the night by the time Hakyeon had finished his long and endless shift. After saying his goodbyes to his co-workers, he left the bakery and started to make his way to his car. In his palms, he held a warm latte, and took a small sip from it. He sighed in content as the liquid warmed him up slightly in the chilly weather. At some point far into his hours of working, Jaehwan had returned to bakery. Hakyeon had jokingly asked him if he forgot where he was going, which earned a soft chuckle from the younger. He had walked up to the counter and placed a cup of coffee in front of Hakyeon, along with slipping a small napkin under the cup. Hakyeon had glanced at the cup and then back at Jaehwan in confusion. The only response he gained, along with a quick wink, before Jaehwan quickly fled the building was, "I never got you a cup of coffee after the bus incident." 

He arrived at his car, and unlocked the door, entering the vehicle. He placed the coffee in the cup holder. He sighed in content and closed his eyes in bliss that he did not have to work the next two days. He shoved his hands in his pockets, his hands coming into contact with something soft. He took out the object, which was the napkin Jaehwan had put under his coffee earlier. He stared at it, a soft grin tugging at his lips. 

After Jaehwan had left the bakery, he had noticed some scribbling on the edge of the napkin that peaked out from under the cup. He had lifted the coffee, and placed it down after having gotten a hold of the napkin. He brought the object close to his face, and started to read what had been written on it, only for Hakyeon to be momentarily stunned at the scribbles. 'Have a latte, it matches you perfectly, sweet and something I'd love to have repeatedly. ;)'

Hakyeon recalled having dropped the napkin in pure astonishment and quickly tried to pick it back up. Although, as he was, he managed to hit his head on the counter. Luckily for him, the latte hadn't tipped over from the force. It earned a breath of relief from him. However his actions did not go unoticed by his co-workers, and all Hakyeon did was smile at them bashfully, disregarding what had happened. He stared at the message in the comfort of his warm vehicle, and spoke quietly to himself, "Taekwoonie was right. That boy can be much worse than Hyukkie."

-

As Hakyeon step foot into the dark apartment, he could hear the shouts of despair and the smashing of a keyboard coming from one of the rooms. He scoffed to himself, closing the door and locking it as he made his way inside. He placed down the bags of fast food that he had bought earlier on the small and neat coffee table. Knowing his roomate and how long he would stay locked in his room playing games, he would rarely get out and fix himself some food. He took out his phone, switching on the flashlight mode on it so he could avoid hitting his foot on any of the furniture, and made his way to the noise. He knew well enough by now, after having lived with the handsome male for two years, that simply knocking on the door would be futile. 

He stood in front of Hongbin's room, where the volume of his yells were on par with a dolphin. Hakyeon took hold of the door handle, turning it and creaked the door open. Light escaped from the confinement of the room, momentarily blinding Hakyeon. He blinked his eyes repeatedly, getting adjusted to the blue light, and slipped into the room. The light from the tv screen lit up the room, however darkness still engulfed most of the small room. He walked up to the culprit of the screams, and placed his hands on his shoulders. Hongbin jolted at the sudden feeling of something warm resting on his shoulders. His body tensed as he could feel the grip tightened and slowly turned his head to his side. He glanced from the side of his eye, and caught a glimpse of someone in his vision. Hakyeon, deciding to mess with the young boy, had put up his hoodie to cover his face before the younger had turned. Hakyeon bent down to be on the same level as Hongbin and slightly leaned closer to him, his face just centimeters away from his cheek. He could hear the younger's erratic breathing and feel him quiver under his touch. Before the younger could act impulsively and attempt to escape from his grip, Hakyeon bit his shoulder harshly. Hongbin grunted at the pain, and turned his chair, freeing his legs from under the desk and kicked Hakyeon's shin. The older backed away at the sudden hit, and knelt down to soothe his leg. Hongbin had used that time to stand and turn on the desk lamp. He turned to Hakyeon, who still had his head down, noticing his shoulders slightly tremble. He looked at him in confusion, and cautiously walked towards him.

He stopped his movenents when he heard the other laugh, and he gave him a perplexed look. "You didn't have to kick me!" Hakyeon whined, finally lifting his face. Hongbin was baffled finally discovering it was Hakyeon all along after having just heard his voice, but seeing his face confirmed his thought. His face contorted with anger at the older's words. "I wouldn't if you didn't bite me!" Hongbin scoffed. He looked to his side, and pulled his shirt to take a look at the damage that Hakyeon had left behind. He came face to face with a deep bite mark that was starting to turn into a light purplish from the amount of force the older had bit him. What did Hongbin ever do to deserve having Hakyeon bite him when he was bored. He was not some tasty meal just ready to be devoured. He sighed and burrowed his eyebrows, as he brought his hand his head. He rubbed his temple in irritation, but came to a halt once Hakyeon spoke up. "Stop screaming as if you were being slaughtered then." Hakyeon sarcastically replied. Before Hongbin could retort at the statement, Hakyeon stood up and put his hand up to stop him from talking. Hongbin quickly shut his mouth and waited for the older to say something. "I bought you some food, come eat." He said softly, his tone apologetic. Hongbin chuckled at the other, putting his arm around his shoulder, and lead him out of his room. Hakyeon mentally smiled to himself. Food always managed to do the trick for the younger to forgive.

-

"So you're not working tomorrow?" Hongbin asked as he started to put all the trash inside the small bag. Hakyeon nodded his head as he also threw all the wrapers inside the greasy bag. He stood up, and took both his and Hongbin's bags to the kitchen, and threw them away. He stood by the kitchen counter, already seeing Hongbin having sat in one of the stools and proceeded to speak. "I have the whole weekend off," Hakyeon started, placing his palm on his chin, his elbow resting on the counter. He continued after taking a deep breath, from not only the thought of work, but also from his full stomach. "Then I'll probably work for the rest of the week, until Carey comes back from her Honeymoon." Hongbin stared at him, a look of sympathy forming on his features. "I can handle it though. Plus more money!" Hakyeon exclaimed trying to disregard the stressful and long days ahead. Hongbin laughed softly at him, rolling his eyes at the older trying to act enthusiastic about something they both knew he couldn't be about. 

"Thats nice though," Hongbin softly said as he stared at the counter. If the room hadn't been dead silent, Hakyeon would've missed what he said. Hongbin glanced up and saw Hakyeon eyeing him in confusion, waiting for him to elaborate what he meant. "Ah, I mean, just being with someone you love without any kind of obstacles ya know." He continued, a hint of melancholy in his voice. Hakyeon picked up his gloomy tone, and proceeded to lighten up the atmosphere that had turned a bit thick, by jokingly asking, "Weren't you the one who wanted to spray couples with water?" Hongbin snickered and nodded. "I'm too content with ruining a couple's outing to even want to be in a relationship." He said, as a small laugh left his lips.

Hongbin jumped off from the stool, and went over to the coffee table to pick up his drink, until he noticed something on the floor. He crouched down, picking up the object that was near where Hakyeon had been sitting. Hongbin assumed it was something of his and started to talk. "You dropped something." He murmured loud enough for Hakyeon to hear. Hakyeon perked up at that, and made his way over to Hongbin, wondering what he could be talking about. Before Hakyeon could ask, Hongbin had noticed the front of the object, which was the napkin, seemed as though there was something written behind it. The harsh force of a pen could be seen front the front, and he turned it over to examine what it was. He started to read what was scribbled on it, and a mischievous smirk started to appear on his face. He turned around, facing Hakyeon, and gazed at him as he raised one eyebrow towards him. He waved the napkin in his hand around, and asked in a teasing manner, "When did you get yourself a secret admirer?"

Hakyeon stared at the younger, taken aback by his question. He pondered as to what he had meant until he took notice of the piece of napkin being flung aroung. His eyes widdened, and he hurridly shoved his hands into his jacket, only to find nothing there. The napkin that Jaehwan had flirted through had managed to slip out of his pocket on his jacket. How, he had no idea as it was deeply stashed in the pocket. Hakyeon gaped at the younger, trying to come up with something to say, but his brain had momentarily malfunctioned. Whether he would lie or tell the truth, Hongbin would tease him nonstop for it, and knowing him, he would tell the others. He exhaled in defeat, as he slumped down into the couch and spoke up. "Jaehwan had visited the bakery today and just happened to buy me a latte as a thanks for last time." He stated. It was the truth, he might not have added the little napkin detail, but Hongbin was smart enough to catch on. And just as he predicted, Hongbin made a small sound of realization moments later.

Hongbin snickered and asked, "but what's with this flirty note?" Hakyeon shrugged his shoulders, not having a solid answer to that question. He assumed it was natural of Jaehwan to flirt with people, and tried not to put too much thought into why. Hongbin waited for an answer from Hakyeon, piercing him with his gaze as the seconds passed, but he soon let it go knowing that the small shrug would be the only thing he would get from the older. He fell into the couch and handed over Hakyeon the napkin. Hakyeon stared at the hand and back to Hongbin in suspicion, before he snatched the napkin from his fingers. Hongbin merely laughed, and said in a taunting manner, refering to the napkin, "You must have liked it a lot if you kept it with you." Hakyeon groaned exaggeratingly, grabbing a pillow near him, and covering his face with it. His groans were muffled out by the pillow, but he could still clearly hear the younger laughing loudly at him, along with voicing out a comment teasingly, "And to think, this all started because some guy you thought was handsome slept on you in the bus." If he continued to keep his face covered, he would suffocate from the pillow, but that seemed like a better option than his nosy roomate.

"Oh by the way," Hongbin started after he calmed down from laughing, "I broke the game controller." Hakyeon removed the pillow from his face, setting it down on his lap, and stared at Hongbin in disbelief. He lightly smacked his head, which caused the younger to whimper in pain.

-

Hakyeon could not believe he had to spend his Saturday waking up early, so he and Hongbin could go to the game store and buy a new controller. All he had wanted was to sleep for hours until the party, but he guesses thats too much to ask for. He and Homgbin were currently in the section where all the game controllers were displayed. Hakyeon waited five, then ten, then fifteen minutes, waiting for Hongbin to find the best controller for his game console. After twenty minutes had passed, he groaned in irritation and shoved Hongbin to the side. Hongbin grinned and said cheerfully, "You'll pay for it too, right?" Hakyeon glanced over to him and raised his eyebrow. Hongbin then took his wallet out of his pocket, and opened it, showing Hakyeon the empty insides, excluding his license and some paper shoved in it. "Clever," Hakyeon bluntly stated, before turning back to face the rack of controllers. In that moment, Hongbin knew he would pay, as he did not object. Hakyeon knelt down to see the controllers that were in the bottom row before picking one and tossing it to Hongbin. "Since I'm paying, you put up with this cheap and plain one." Hakyeon said pointing at the controller. Hongbin looked at his hands, where the controller lied, and checked ghe price, noticing it was much more expensive than Hakyeon made it sound. Hongbin clicked his tongue in disbelief, and slung his arm around Hakyeon's shoulder as they started to walk to where the cash registers resided. "Cheap my ass." Hongbin chuckled out, earning a small smile from the older. "However it is plain." Hongbin retorted. Hakyeon laughed and lightly ruffled Hongbin's hair, resulting in the younger to bark at him, "How dare you ruin my hair!"

-

"Oh! It's Taek and Jaehwan." Hongbin exclaimed. They had been making their way out of the game store, after having bought Hongbin's controller when the younger noticed two familiar faces. The two men had heard their names being called out, and turned to see their friends. They quickly made their way over to them, as did Hakyeon and Hongbin. Hakyeon could see a smirk forming on the younger's lips as they were walking towards Jaehwan and Taekwoon, and he eyed him skeptically. As the four men met in the middle, both Taekwoon and Jaehwan greeted them. Before Hakyeon could greet the both of them back, Hongbin spoke up whimsically, making it know that he was talking specifically to Jaehwan, "Hakyeon is really sweet, so I'll allow you to have him." Jaehwan stared at him perplexed, not knowing what the other has meant. As both Jaehwan and Taekwoon glanced at each other in confusion and trying to come up with an answer, Hakyeon's head snapped to Hongbin. He gaped at him, while Hongbin glanced the the older, winking at him and mouthed, 'You're welcome.' Hakyeon suppressed a shriek that was threatening to escape, and a groan left his lips instead. 

Hakyeon could already feel all the blood rush to his head, and with the way Hongbin was grinning at him, he could tell his cheeks were beet red. Throughout Hakyeon's minor internal crisis, Jaehwan let out a noise of realization. "Oh you read the napkin?" Jaehwan asked, although with the reaction from Hongbin and Hakyeon, he didn't need anyone to  confirm his question. Taekwoon's face was still contorted in confusion. He tugged Jaehwan's sleeve, gaining his attention, and having seen his perplexed expression, Jaehwan simply whispered, "I'll tell you later." Taekwoon nodded and decided to leave it, he had no mood to deal with whatever was happening at the moment. 

Hongbin nodded at Jaehwan's question. Jaehwan released a sigh, and shifted his gaze from Hongbin to Hakyeon. "I thought that'd be our little secret." Jaehwan said flirtatiously. Hakyeon stared at Jaehwan like a deer caught in headlights, releasing a small and quiet, "what," that only Hongbin could hear. Jaehwan laughed at the older's reaction, taking note of how flushed his face had turned and he smiled to himself.

"Okay, that was odd." Taekwoon said quietly, his voice laced with confusion. "Oh right, what time are you two going to be leaving for the party?" Taekwoon suddenly recalled what he was originally going to ask. Hakyeon exhaled, attempting to calm himself, and responded to Taekwoon, "We planned at around eight." He said, shortly glancing to Hongbin. He saw him nod his head after he had said the time and repeated himself, "Yeah, eight."

"I guess we'll meet you two there." Taekwoon said simply. "Ah, I actually have to go to something with Hyuk," Jaehwan suddenly spoke up. Taekwoon raised his eybrow at him, signaling him to continue. "He was gonna help me unpack, so you'll have to go alone. Sorry!" Jaehwan continued apologetically, his face contorted with worry. Taekwoon sighed, and rubbed his shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll tag along with Wonshik." Taekwoon said softly. Both Hakyeon and Hongbin laughed softly at the sight, which earned a glare from Taekwoon. They stiffled their laughs at Taekwoon trying to act harsh towards them. Minutes later, they had said their goodbyes to each other, and parted ways. As both Hakyeon and Hongbin started to enter Hakyeon's car, Hakyeon stayed still and scowled at the younger.

From the silence that filled the small vehicle, Hongbin could tell something was wrong. He turned his head to face Hakyeon and saw the frown on his lips. He chuckled at the sight and asked, "Why do you look like some dog just took the biggest shit on your head?" Hakyeon scoffed and replied, "Oh maybe if you hadn't brought up the napkin, my face wouldn't look like this."

"What do you mean." Hongbin started to say, stopped for a brief second to gaze over Hakyeon's face before continuing. "You always look like that."

Hakyeon rolled his eyes at the younger's sassy remark and proceeded to smack his head. "But you didn't have to say that!" Hakyeon said, punctuating every word loudly.

"Its simple, it was a form of revenge after biting me." Hongbin said as he looked at the older tauntingly. "I thought you weren't dumb enough and could understand yourself." He said sarcastically. Hakyeon groaned in frustration, which just made Hongbin laugh at the older's pain. "I'm never buying you another game controller." Hakyeon threatened as he turned on the ignition, and pulled out of the parking lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do you flirt. How do you do romance. More importantly, how do you even write. I regret trying this oUT-
> 
> But its still fun even if its shitty lmao. :')


	5. Chapter 5

"Have you seen my beanie?" Hakyeon yelled throughout the apartment in an attempt for his roomate to hear his question. Hakyeon had just finished changing into some comfortable clothes for the party that was nerely just an hour away. Considering how chilly it was getting recently, his beanie was a good tactic to keeo his head warm and avoid getting sick. Seconds passed as the only thing that responded was the silence. He had seen Hongbin playing his game earlier, and knowing his priorities, he could guess that the younger was done preparing himself for the party hours ago just so he could focus on his game. He was about to yell the man's name to gain his attention until he heard the soft pitter patter of feet. He turned his head to where the sound had come from. As he did, he could see Hongbin approaching the living room from the corridor, with a fluffy object in his hands. He lifted his arm up once he stood in front of Hakyeon, waiting until the older took what was in his grasp.

"Thanks." Hakyeon said with a smile as he reached to take the beanie. However his hand met with air as the younger moved the object to his side. Hakyeon looked at the younger in confusion, and attempted to get the hat, quickly moving his hand to his side and grasping the hat. Hongbin squeaked and tightened his grasp on the hat, trying to pull it away.

An idea popped up in Hakyeon's head and while he gripped the hat tightly, he slowly moved towards the younger. Hongbin watched as Hakyeon started to get closer and he burrowed his eyebrows at the older. Hakyeon quickly moved his head forward, and lightly pecked the younger's forehead which resulted in him flinging himself backwards from the older, the hat long forgotten. He brought his hand to his forehead and started to roughly wipe the spot that Hakyeon's lips had touched as though it was some infected area. "Don't treat my love as some plague," Hakyeon snickered as he watched the younger.

"Gross, don't give me affection." Hongbin snarkly replied. Hakyeon knew what Hongbin's weak spots were, and since his first one was not currently present, showering the younger in some kind of affection that would surely make his face scrunch up in disgust would do the trick.

After he deemed his forehead as clean, he promptly started to walk back to his room to continue playing his game. However a knock interrupted his steps, and he glanced over to Hakyeon and quietly asked, "were you expecting anyone?" Hakyeon shook his head and started to walk to the front door. He swiftly threw his beanie to the couch and decided he would put it on once the two had left for the party. The knocks continued and started to get louder. He placed his hand on the door, turning the knob and flung the door open.

He stared at the two unexpected visitors, and stood to the side to let the both of them in. "It's Hyuk and Jaehwan, Binnie." Hakyeon said as he glanced to Hongbin. "About time! What are you, a sloth?" Hyuk remarked as he and Jaehwan made their way into the apartment. Hyuk let himself drop on the couch, earning a loud squeak from the floor. He pulled Jaehwan's hand as soon as he got in a comfortable position, earning a small whine from him. Hakyeon shut the door, as Hongbin moved from his position and sat on the armrest of the couch. Hakyeon let out a humorless laugh at the youngest words as he walked to where the three were seated, and took a seat next to Jaehwan. "I wish I was so you could wait outside for hours," Hakyeon said. 

"Guess who just got a new roomate?" Hyuk singed out. Jaehwan laughed at the younger's antics, as Hakyeon perked up at the words. "He agreed?" Hakyeon scoffed, his eyebrows raised in confusion and then continued, directing his words at Jaehwan, "Its not too late to change room. Save yourself while you have the chance." Hyuk's jaw dropped in shock at his words and yelled, "I'm not that bad of a roomate!" Jaehwan chuckled at him and said, as he waved his hand in the air to dismiss the idea of switching rooms, "I think I can handle him. He has to help my finish unpacking anyway." Hakyeon grinned at Jaehwan and nodded, shrugging his shoulders as he said, "Don't come crying to me later." He then leaned closer towards him, and whispered in his ears, as he eyed Hyuk tauntingly, "I warned you he was satan himself." Hyuk burrowed his eyebrows as a pout started to form on his lips. His crossed his arms as a child would do when they would not get something they wanted, which earned a loud reaction from both Hakyeon and Jaehwan.

  
"What are you two doing here anyway?" Hongbin asked the two vistors. Hyuk turned his head to look at Hongbin, and raised his arm. He brought his hand to the older, and pinched his cheek as he sneer at him, "Just wanted to see if you actually left the domain of your room." Hongbin scoffed at the younger and slapped his hand away from his cheek, and started to soothe it as he felt a tingle of pain.

"You don't like affection from me, but when it comes to Hyuk, its a different story." Hakyeon taunted towards the two as he observed the exchange. Hongbin huffed in annoyance at the older. "Did you not see the pain i was in," Hongbin rhetorically asked while pointing at his cheek and then to Hyuk. "Oh please, you like pain," Hyuk quickly added, earning a smack from Hongbin. "Jaehwan! Help me crush this little shit." Hongbin shouted at the man that had stayed quiet throughout the whole exchange. Hongbin started to push Hyuk, while Jaehwan did so as well, squishing the poor boy. The action earned sharp cries from the younger, as he repeatedly said, "I give up! Have mercy on me." After a few more pushes, Hongbin stopped adding force and leaned back into the couch. Jaehwan however had not ceased the action and had pushed the younger to the side, causing his head to land in Hongbin's lap. Hakyeon laughed softly at the predicament and patted Jaehwan's shoulder while whispering, "Good job Jaehwannie." Jaehwan smiled softly at the older and nodded his head in acknowledgment.

"This is actually really comfortable. Thanks for the push Jaehwan." Hyuk said as he dug his head into Hongbin's lap, attempting to get comfortable in his position. Hongbin looked at the head that rested in his lap and softly pet his head, earning a blissful sigh from the younger. Hongbin grinned mischievously as the once soft hand that was caressing him soon roughly lifted his head and flung him forward without warning. Hyuk toppled from the couch and fell on the floor, his back pressed on the floor whole his legs dangled in the air. In most cases, he wouldn't have let his guard down, but with Hongbin softly running his fingers through his hair, he had not expected the older to throw him off. A mix of laughs could be heard from the three at the scene, along with Hakyeon snickering, "Guess you're not that strong despite your size."

Hyuk groaned as he started to change from the uncomfortable position, and rubbed his neck as he sat down on the floor. He clicked his tongue and remarked towards the eldest, "Yet you easily fall to the floor if i lightly push you." He turned towards Hakyeon's direction and spat out, a huge grin on his lips, "So who's really the loser here." Hakyeon leaned over to where Hyuk was currently sitting and placed his palm on the nape of his neck. The three men glanced at Hakyeon in confusion as he was not moving an inch and simply smiling. They were snapped out of their puzzeled expressions as they heard Hyuk let out a pained groan, and soothe his nape where Hakyeon's hand had once been. "You didn't need to pull my hair. You know that place hurts the most!" Hyuk whined as he stood up and made his way behind Hongbin as though the older could protect him from Hakyeon's violent tendencies.

As Hakyeon was leaning on Jaehwan's lap, acting as though he would pounce on the youngest in rage, he let out a snicker. "That's what you get spawn of satan." He barked out.

Jaehwan stared at Hakyeon and back to both Hongbin and Hyuk who had noticed the predicament Jaehwan was in. Jaehwan could not move as Hakyeon had most of his weight on him, his hands placed on his leg and body crouched forward. He coughed to gain the attention of the older, and once he had succeeded, Hakyeon turned towards him and had a questioned expression paint his face. Jaehwan laughed softly and said, "I know I'm very comfortable to lay on but I can't feel my legs." Hakyeon raised his eyebrow, perplexed, and proceeded to look down to see how most of his upper body was on his lap. He quickly flung himself back, hurting his back in the process as he hit it with the armrest. He doubled over in pain, earning a loud laugh from the three men, and let out a faint, "sorry."

"Don't be. I like a cuddler." Jaehwan whispered loud enough for only Hakyeon to have heard. Hakyeon snapped his head at him not having expected an answer like that. He bashfully let out a laugh, not knowing how to respond, or whether to comment on how a pink tint adorned Jaehwan's cheeks. Hongbin and Hyuk eyed the two in suspicion, taking in their reactions. They glanced at each other, and gestured toward the two. As if they both held the same brain, they grinned mischievously at each other and nodded.

Hyuk gagged loudly, gaining both Hakyeon's and Jaehwan's attention. Hakyeon looked at the younger in concern but after realizing what the younger had in mind by the eerily smile on his lips, he rolled his eyes and sighed deeply. "Man Hongbin, how I hate seeing such a disgustingly cute sight." Hyuk sighed dramatically, as he flung his arm around Hongbin's shoulder, and leaned into him. Jaehwan playfully rolled his eyes at the younger's remark, and before Hakyeon could stand up to attack the younger, which Jaehwan could see his flushed was slightly flushed, he spoke up. "You're in no place to talk when both you and Hongbin don't know the definition of personal space." He taunted, pointing at the two's close proximity. Hakyeon snickered at his retort, and held his hand up. Jaehwan noticed it from the corner of his eye, smiled and slapped the older's palm with his own. Hyuk dramatically whined at Jaehwan's words in embarrassment, "That's not fair!"

As Hakyeon watched the scene with a smile at the two's playfulness, his eyes landed on Hongbin. He noticed how his expression contorted in uneasiness from Jaehwan's words. He pursed his lips in deep thought as to what was going on in his friend's mind, and thought back to the day before and the tension he could feel from the two. His thoughts were soon interrupted by Hyuk, and he turned to him, giving him his full attention as  his words were directed at him.

"Well we need a ride. Hakyeon, can you be an angel and take us?" Hakyeon rolled his eyes playfully at the younger, and said in a sarcastic tone, "You really must love me if I was your first choice." Hyuk cackled as softly patted Hongbin's shoulder as though the words that had just escaped Hakyeons mouth were too hilarious. Hongbin chuckled and said, as he took hold of Hyuk wrist to stop his actions, "By this reaction, he must've been your sixth choice."

Hakyeon groaned in annoyment and stood up from the couch, shouting as he walked to the kitchen countertop, "I'll only take Jaehwan then. He seems to have more respect for me than you two shits." Jaehwan laughed at the older's words, and it caused Hakyeon to stop in his tracks, and slowly turn around. He eyed Jaehwan in astonishment as both Hyuk and Hongbin tried to stiffle their laughyers, and asked dramatically, "Why does everyone take me for granted." That sentence caused the two who were trying to stop their laughter to escape through their lips as Jaehwan gazed apologetically towards the eldest, still having the smile on his face. Hongbin stood up from his seat on the couch's armrest, and after having calmed down said, "Stop acting like a drama queen. We're gonna be late."

\---

As the four boys had been seated in Hakyeon's vehicle, Hongbin was giving the older directions to where the party resided in. There was constant arguing between Hakyeon and Hongbin, as the older seemed to be driving in the opposite direction than what Hongbin had told him. The two argued nonstop as the older drove around in what seemed like circles, while Hyuk and Jaehwan watched the two stubborn men insist they were right. They both laughed amongst each other, and at one point Hyuk spoke up, insisting that if Hakyeon had let him drive, they would have arrived in two minutes. Hakyeon had shot him a glare from the rear view mirror quickly before settling his eyes back on the road. 

After deciding to let his pride rest, he followed Hongbin's directions step by step, and they had arrived, parking a block away from the house. "You would've crashed my car if I let you drive," Hakyeon barked out as he shut off the ignition and unlocked the doors. They all opened their doors and stepped out of the car. Hyuk had feigned a look of hurt as he looked at Hakyeon over his statement, as Hongbin played along with the younger's antics and patted his back. Hakyeon playfully rolled his eyes, as a smiled started to tug on his lips. "You're an idiot." He scoffed, and gestured for the four of them to start walking.

\---

At some point Hyuk and Hongbin had seperated from the two eldest after saying they would get some drinks. There was no doubt that the two had run into some friends and forgot about what they were initially getting, especially when Hakyeon could hear the loud laughter explode from the tiny bodies and the cheers of other people there. He laughed quietly to himself, the sound muffled by the boom of music being played and the chatter and yells of multiple people. He turned over to Jaehwan, who held a lost expression on his face, as Taekwoon, the one he would normally follow around in comfort had not yet arrived, nor Hyuk, who he had seemed to have clicked with immediately was out of sight. Hakyeon spoke up, raising his voice for the other to hear over the music, and asked, "Wanna go get those drinks that those idiots promised to get?" Jaehwan looked at the older and nodded with a smile. They both made their way towards the kitchen, squeezing through the bodies on the floor. Hakyeon would quickly look behind himself to make sure Jaehwan was still following and keeping close as to not get seperated. 

As they entered the door to the kitchen, Hakyeon noticed a familiar face and quickly exclaimed, "Namjoon!" The man in question whipped his head at his name being called and waved to Hakyeon once he saw him. Hakyeon tugged on Jaehwan's sleeve and pulled him along with him as he walked towards Namjoon. Namjoon has noticed the new face, and was about to ask who he was, until he remembered something Hakyeon said the previous day. Before he had left the bakery, he was still badgering the older about how he eerily stared at some guy on a bus, and the one distinct feature he had mentioned were pointy ears that resembled an elfs. 

He grinned mischievously, and Hakyeon noticed it, already dreading what the other would say. "So this is your 'elf man' on the bus?" Hakyeon groaned loudly while Jaehwan looked midly confused as to why Hakyeon reacted in that way. "Can we stop with the constant elf jabs," Hakyeon whinned, earning a laugh from Namjoon. 

While the two conversed, Jaehwan went to get a pair of drinks, and he bumped into someone. He was about to apologize until the other laughed, much to his confusion, and waved his hand that it wasn't a big deal. As the two conversed for a while swapping jokes here and there, and he had learned the man's name was Junghwan, although for some reason, he went by Sanduel. Jaehwan never figured out how he got that name but shrugged it off after Sanduel had left the kitchen.

He observed Hakyeon and Namjoon talk as he stood there, boredom evident on his face. His face lit up once his ears caught on to Hakyeon talking about the man named Namjoon to confess to someone. He slowly walked to the two, and stood next to Hakyeon as he listened.

"Why should I listen to you? Your latest relationship ended in two weeks," Namjoon retorted. Hakyeon scoffed and patted Namjoon's cheek lightly after the low blow to his esteem. "Because I know for a fact his feelings are mutual," Hakyeon scoffed, as he retreated his arm back to his side. He noticed Jaehwan holding up an extra cup, and gesturing it towards him, and took it, mumbling a soft 'thank you.' 

"And, you have to be an idiot to not see it." Hakyeon added as he took a sip of his drink, his face contorting in disgust at the bitter taste. He glanced outside the kitchen and noticed a handsome man with wide shoulders. He grinned that Jin had finally showed up and an idea popped into his head as Namjoon went on and on about how he was far from an idiot. While he was occupied talking, Hakyeon bumped his shoulder with Jaehwan's, gaining his attention and leaned close to him, whispering in his ear, "You see that guy," he started as he point subtly at Jin. Jaehwan followed his finger and nodded once his eyes set on the man. Hakyeon continued, "Talk to him and tell him to go into the closet to the right from the kitchen, and that Namjoon is waiting for him there. 

Jaehwan nodded and walked off outside the kitchen and started to converse with this Jin character. Hakyeon kept a close eye on them, as he acted as though he was listening to Namjoon, nodding here and there. He noticed how Jaehwan seemed to havw hit it off with Jin, the both of them joking around and flailing their limbs around, dancing. He softly smiled at the sight, however that earned a confused look from Namjoon as well as a question. He just shrugged it off, and told the other to continue. Once he saw that Jaehwan had convinced Jin to follow him, he placed his drink down and he started to walk, which in turn made Namjoon start walking as he continued talking about how a guy like Jin would never go out with him. As they both walked, he saw Jaehwan outside of the door, and gestured Namjoon to follow him. He eyed Jaehwan, as if telling him to open the door once they're close enough and he nodded, understanding the gaze. He had step down his cup, that was still filled of contents and waited. 

Once Namjoon was close enough to not run away or get out of their grasps, Jaehwan flung the door open, making the person inside shriek at the sudden light, and Namjoon was caught off guard. Hakyeon took hold of Namjoon's side, and Jaehwan took hold of the other to push him in the closet. Although Namjoon put up a fight, they had managed to get him stuck in there along with Jin. 

Namjoon pounded his fists on the door, yelling "Let us out!" He tried to turn the knob but it was stuck, since Hakyeon had placed a chair there to avoid the chance of either escaping. Hakyeon laughed and said loud enough for the two to hear, "Not until you two get out of the closet and say you like each other already! I'm already losing my hair worrying about you two." The sound from the other side stopped, and Hakyeon huffed in triumph. He noticed a mint haired male that was next to him, having watched the whole scene, and told him, "make sure those two idiots stay in there." He nodded, although Hakyeon could not make sure whether he would follow through, but he didn't worry too much about it.

"That was such a harsh way to get them to get rid of their tension." Jaehwan chuckled, the corners of his eyes crinkling in amusement. "It was the only way. They're both too stubborn." Hakyeon sighed. "Thanks for the help though, couldn't have done it without you." Hakyeon chuckled as he rubbed Jaehwan's head, ruffling his hair. Jaehwan pouted at the action but smiled as he replied, "We'd be great partners in crime." Hakyeon nodded and joked, "The best one I could ever ask for."

He looked at Jaehwan as they stood awkwardly in the same and asked sheepishly, "Do you want to get a new drink?"

\---

"I wanted to ask for a bit now," Jaehwan suddenly spoke up, as they were seated on the couch, watching as Hyuk and a friend of his, who Hakyeon picked up his name as Sungjae, were wrestling on the ground. Hakyeon craned his head towards Jaehwan, lifting his eyebrow in anticipation as to what he was wondering. "Why haven't you called or texted me?" Jaehwan asked, as he gazed at the older curiously. Hakyeon coughed as he choked on his spit at the unexpected question. Jaehwan flinched at the sudden action, and brought his hand to Hakyeon's back, patting it lightly. He took a moment to calm down, and placed his head in his hands, wondering what the younger was talking about. He had not gotten his number, so he could have no way to contact him, even if he might have wanted to, although he would not admit that to himself. He brought his head up from his palms, and glanced at Jaehwan, confusion etched on his face. "What do you mean? You never gave me your number," Hakyeon stated. 

Now it was Jaehwan's turn to stare at the older, his mind perplexed at what he just heard. He opened his mouth, only to close it, and then opened it again as he forced words out. He motioned his hand as a piece of paper, and gestured as though he had a pen in his other, earning a questioned stare from Hakyeon before he said, "On the napkin from yesterday." The realization slowly dawned on Hakyeon, knowing what Jaehwan was refering to, however, he had not seen a number on the little piece of napkin aside from that flirty note.

"I didn't see a number on it," Hakyeon started to say, stopping momentarily and continued his thoughts, "Hongbin would have also mentioned it if he saw it there." Jaehwan's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he tried to remember everything he had put on there and his mind wasn't playing tricks on him.

"Oh my god," he said once the realization hit him. He moved his hands frantically and panicked, much to Hakyeon's dismay. "I can't believe i forgot something so simple as to write it down," Jaehwan said as he panicked, letting out a laugh here and there nervously. Hakyeon stared at him, his eyebrows raised in anusement at the younger's dilemna and laughed softly to himself. "I'm sorry if it seemed like I came on too strong, I just wanted to become friends," Jaehwan rushed out anxiously. Hakyeon chuckled and waved his hands in the air, dismissing Jaehwan's concerns. He told the other that it was alright, and it seemed to have eased him.

"Ah," Hakyeon suddenly let out a soft sound. This gained Jaehwan's attention as he blinked at the older, waiting until he said something. "If you still wanna give it to me though, input it." Hakyeon grinned, taking out his cellphone from his pocket and holding it in the air, in between the two of them. Jaehwan stared at the phone in his hands momentarily, then to Hakyeon's face, as if searching for an answer that he wasn't joking around. He nodded as he realized the older wasn't messing around, and took his phone, and turned on the screen. It was protected by a lock, but that was a common thing. Jaehwan peered up to Hakyeon, and held the phone in front of his face, the light binding him for a moment. "You're not very smooth are you," he joked as Hakyeon focused on the screen, barely registering Jaehwan's words. Hakyeon cursed at his attempt at being bold only for it to backfire on him, and took the phone back, and unlocked the screen. He handed it back to Jaehwan, the younger smiling at him.

As he was busy putting in his number in his phone, Hakyeon looked in front of him, noticing that Hyuk and Sungjae had long left after their little match. "Here," Jaehwan said, tossing his phone back to him. If Hakyeon's reflexes had been a moment too late, his phone may have ended up on the floor and shattered. "What would you have done if you broke my baby and lost your number along with it," Hakyeon gasped dramatically, with wide eyes as he looked at Jaehwan. Jaehwan smiled, laughing a silent laugh and said as he winked at the older, "I would just ask Taek for your number. Problem solved." Hakyeon rolled his eyes, slightly shoving the other playfully. Jaehwan chuckled at him, and mirrored the action towards Hakyeon, earning a sweet laugh from him.

"I'm going to get something to drink. I'm parched," Jaehwan said as he stood up from the couch. He looked at Hakyeon and asked, "do you want a drink?" Hakyeon shook his head, and before Jaehwan could leave, Hakyeon jokingly said, "You sure you can find your way?" Jaehwan scoffed, and with a determined look, he nodded.


	6. Chapter 6

Minutes had passed since he saw Jaehwan after declaring he would get another drink, and he wasn't surprised. He noticed how he had managed to get along with two people here, and saw a glimpse of him walking with Jin, which he noticed he was out of the closet much earlier than he expected, but he smiled at the thought he and Namjoon got their things together, and some guy Hakyeon didn't know. He's seen him around and recalls he's one of Gongchan's friends. He didn't mind however, he did enjoy a bit of solitude, and seeing how Jaehwan, who had seemed so uncomfortable in the beginning getting accostumed to things and having met some people brought his lips to curve upward. 

He suddenly felt the couch dip next to him, and he glanced to his side. Before he could see the face of who it was, he heard a groan, "You're such an ass, you know that?" Hakyeon chuckled, knowing who the deep voice belonged to. He turned his head, and lightly pat his companion's back, and said, "But it all worked out in the end, didn't it Namjoon." 

"About time too," Hakyeon snarkly added. Namjoon scoffed at the older, and grabbed his wrist to stop him patting his back. He flung Hakyeon's hand back to him as he rolled his eyes.

"Don't act like that. I saw you two sharing a kiss earlier." Hakyeon stated. Namjoon groaned, a blush making its way up to his cheeks. He stood up and shouted dramatically at Hakyeon, more embarrassed at being seen than enraged, "Yes, thank you oh marvelous one for helping!" Hakyeon laughed at Namjoon's words and before he could try to calm down the embarrassed man, he stomped away, disappearing into the crowd of people.

Hakyeon chuckled lightly at his reaction, and leaned back into the couch. He recalled that he still hadn't seen Taekwoon or Wonshik yet, and decided to text them. He took out his phone, about to open up his messages, until a red solo cup was placed in front of his face. He stared at it for a brief moment, confused, and then looked at the person who held it. 

"What was that about?" A soft voice asked. Hakyeon took the cup from Taekwoon's hand, nearly dropping it once Wonshik had flung himself on the couch next to Hakyeon. Hakyeon whined at Wonshik, scolding him at the fact he almost dropped his cup on himself, as Wonshik rolled his eyes playfully. 

"But your clothes are fine," Wonshik retorted back, which just earned him a light smack on his head. Taekwoon laughed softly at the two bickering and sat down on the armrest of the couch.

After the two ceased in their childish arguing, Taekwoon spoke up again, asking the same question he didn't recieve an answer to.

"Oh, he just can't come to terms that I helped him get the man of his dreams." Hakyeon stated, feigning a look of disappointment. Taekwoon scoffed, asking, "You helped?" Hakyeon nodded, confused as to where Taekwoon was going with his words.

"You usually fuck things up," Wonshik finished, letting out a slight laugh. Taekwoon nodded at his words, agreeing with him, causing Hakyeon to pout at the two.

"Plus," Taekwoon started after Wonshik stopped laughing, "No one in their right mind would want your help."

Hakyeon leaned to his opposite side, leaning over Wonshik's lap to slap Taekwoon's leg in response. As he was about to, Wonshik groaned out, "You're crushing me."

"You can put up with this," Hakyeon retorted, and proceeded to smack Taekwoon's leg. He then got off of Wonshik, and leaned back into his seat. Wonshik exaggeratedly put his hands over his chest, groaning out how Hakyeon needs to pay for his medical bills from now on. Hakyeon rolled his eyes at the younger's antics.

The trio continued speaking amongst themselves, as well as bickering in a playful way over the littest of things until they heard a voice yell over the music. "Oh you two finally arrived!

The three of them looked towards where the voice came from, and noticed Hyuk walking towards them. "What took you two so long?" Hyuk asked after opting to sit on the other armrest, next to Hakyeon. Hakyeon gazed at both Wonshik and Taekwoon, wondering too why they arrived almost an hour later.

"Wonshik's hair wouldn't cooperate," Taekwoon simply said. Wonshik nodded and added, "It was a mess to just style it." Hyuk eyed the two suspiciously, resulting in the two of them to look elsewhere from his sharp gaze. Before he could open his mouth, a voice called out for him. The four of them looked and saw a girl coming up to them. Hakyeon noticed the slight smile on Hyuk's lips as his eyes were on the girl. "Hyuk, Sungjae still wants to wrestle with you," the girl said. Hyuk nodded and looked back towards the three, saying his goodbyes, before running from where the girl had come from, grabbing her wrist and dragging her along with him.

"Ah sorry about suddenly stealing him away!" The girl shouted towards the three of them as she was dragged into the sea of people.

"Do you think that was Hyuk's girlfriend?" Wonshik suddenly spoke up once the girl was out of sight. Taekwoon looked at him in confusion with his eyebrows furrowed. Hakyeon nodded, and said as he stroked his chin, "His face when she appeared sure hints at it."  Taekwoon looked from Hakyeon to Wonshik, not yet understanding what the two were talking about.

  
"Wait," Taekwoon suddenly spoke up and continued his question after pondering on what to say, "Hyuk got a girlfriend?" Wonshik raised his eyebrow in confusion to the older's question and why he seemed so shocked. He figured he knew already from when he and Hyuk were talking about it. He glanced at Hakyeon, as if to ask him if Taekwoon already knew, but the only reply he got from him was a shake of his head. "I thought," Taekwoon softly said as he stared at the ground, and it could have been missed by the two if they weren't paying close attention.

They waited for him to continue until he lifted his head quickly, a hint of determination flickered in his eyes and rushed out, "Sorry. I gotta go." He glanced to Wonshik and with an apologetic face, he said softly, "Wonshik, I'll be back to drive us home later." Hakyeon and Wonshik observed as Taekwoon made his way past the dancing bodies, taking his phone out and disappearing out of their sight.

"Did Taekwoon not know," Hakyeon asked. Wonshik merely shook his head, not knowing what to say. "Maybe he thought Hyuk was dating someone else," Wonshik suggested after pondering on it for a few moments. Hakyeon nodded in response.

Suddenly Hakyeon slapped Wonshik's back, earning a groan of pain from the older. He snapped his head towards the older, a look of confusion and disbelief in his eyes as Hakyeon whistled at him.

"Since when were you two so close?" Hakyeon smugly asked, a huge grin on his face. Wonshik took a moment to understand what the older meant. He shook his hands in the air, shaking his head as well at Hakyeon's insinuation. "There's nothing between us!" Wonshik splattered out, the tips of his ears turning red. The reaction only earned a smug grin from the older.

"Yet," Hakyeon added as he nudged at Wonshik's side. Wonshik groaned loudy as he placed his head in his hands on agony over Hakyeon's words which just caused the older to laugh. He let out a muffled string of curses as well as, from what Hakyeon could pick up, were whines telling the older to quit his jokes and how he wasn't lying. "I'm just saying," Hakyeon piqued up, "'drive us home' sure sounds like something is up."

Wonshik let his hands fall to his lap and lifted his head to face Hakyeon. He glared at the older over his antics, although Hakyeon could clearly see how Wonshiks face seemed flushed from embarrassment. Hakyeon let out a breathy chuckle and added in a soft tone, "You can deny that, but you can't deny your feelings. I've seen the glances you give him."

"I can deny it because nothing has happened." Wonshik retored harshly, ignoring the other half of Hakyeon's words as he lightly shoved the older's arm. "Not from what i can see, it has." Hakyeon murmured as he brought the cup to his lips to drink its contents. Wonshik eyed at the older while the one in question glanced elsewhere.

While the older was opting to look anywhere else other than Wonshik scrutinizing glare, he hadn't noticed that someone had spotted the two, and was making his way over to them. "Your elf is coming over here," Wonshik said quietly, but loud enough for Hakyeon to catch on. He turned to Wonshik, raising an eyebrow. Wonshik gestured to his side, causing Hakyeon's field of vision to focus on that. He noticed Jaehwan was walking towards them, and the small smile that appeared on his lips when Hakyeon spotted him. Hakyeon smiled back and waved, before whispering to Wonshik, "He's not my elf."

Wonshik snickered at the older as he glanced at him, noticing a pink tint on his cheeks.

"Hakyeon," Jaehwan shouted as he ran to the two, adding a quick greet of, "Hello Wonshik," after recognizing him. Wonshik greeted him back, giving him a small wave.

"Sorry I was gone for so long," Jaehwan started to say, intending to stop his words there, but continued to ramble on. Hakyeon chuckled at his action and shool his head and hand in the air to stop his nonstop ramblings.

"Don't worry about it. I got Wonshik here to keep me company," Hakyeon said, to which Wonshik spoke up and added, "unwillingly." Hakyeon scoffed at him, raising his hand playfully, causing the younger to flinch, while Jaehwan let out a quiet laugh at the scene.

"I'm glad that you made friends and seem more comfortable too," Hakyeon added in a soft tone. Jaehwan smiled at his words, and added one more apology for abrutly leaving, which Hakyeon just shrugged off, and asked, "Did Taekwoon not arrive yet?"

Hakyeon looked over at Wonshik, still questioning what had happened earlier, who was already glancing at him before opening his mouth. "He was here earlier but left out of nowhere a few minutes ago."

He had briefly explained what had happened after Jaehwan had a look of confusion plastered on his face. Jaehwan let out a quiet 'oh' after Hakyeon had explained the little that he knew. "And now Wonshik is sulking that he can't spend his time next to him instead of with me," Hakyeon added, as he held his hand over his heart and feigned a look of hurt, which only caused Wonshik to slap his thigh in retaliation. Hakyeon yelped in pain and soothed his thigh while Jaehwan laughed softly.

In the midst of Wonshik and Hakyeon's exchange, Jaehwan heard his name being called out from behind and looked in the direction. Jin and Sanduel were both waving at him, gesturing him to walk over to them. Jaehwan looked back at the couch that was occupied by Wonshik and Hakyeon and spoke up to get their attention and halt their current dispute. "I gotta go," He said in an apologetic tone.

Hakyeon and Wonshik laughed softly at his expression and he nodded, to which Jaehwan waved at them and left to where the two men were waiting for him.

As Hakyeon was focused on Jaehwan walking away, Wonshik attempted to take the chance of slipping away from the oldest, only to be pulled back into the couch. He struggled to get away from his grip, only to have his head in a headlock. Wonshik gave up in his struggle and let out a loud groan, that only made Hakyeon laugh. "I want freedom," Wonshik huffed in frustration.

"Not in my household," Hakyeon remarked. Wonshik stayed motionless in the same position, taking in Hakyeon's words to which he found something odd in.

"This isn't even your house!" Wonshik yelled and continued to try and get free from Hakyeon's death grip.

-

Hours had passed of endless chatter, music that seemed to have no end even after the party died down, and quite a few of rough exchanges from the university students who were under too much influence of alchohol. Hakyeon and Wonshik ran into one of Taekwoon's friends, Himchan, and made small talk with him.

Hakyeon, still being a bit curious as to why Taekwoon had left, asked him if he told Himchan about it, to which he shook his head in response.

"I didn't even get a text that he was here yet," Himchan stated.

At some point, far into the night, but not deep enough that most people were either dead asleep on the floor or had left, Taekwoon had come back, along with Hongbin who seemed as though he had too much to drink.

He had kept mumbling incoherent things in his state as he was supported by Taekwoon. Hakyeon had asked Taekwoon why he had suddenly left after recalling his abrupt action hours ago, to which he only responded hy gesturing his head to the drunken man he was keeping steady.

Hakyeon looked at him in confusion, about to pry futher until Wonshik had spoken up, demanding more than asking, for Taekwoon to get him away from Hakyeon. His words resulted in a scoff from the man in question, along with a soft laugh escaping Taekwoon's lips.

With Hongbin's current state, he had told Wonshik that he was going to leave and drop him of at his apartment, the second part of his sentence directed more towards Hakyeon.

Hakyeon had simply nodded his head in acknowledgment, and replied with, "Just make sure to lock the door on your way out."

His words only gained a roll of the eyes and a response filled with sarcasm of how he wasn't a child and knew what to do.

The three men had left, but not before hearing Hakyeon say to them in a drawled tone, "Be safe you two. And don't make Hongbin witness something dangerous to his innocence." He let out a chuckle as Taekwoon huffed out in frustraion, flipping off Hakyeon with his free hand at the hidden undertone in his words.

"He isn't that innocent to begin with," Wonshik yelled over the music, with his face flushed. He and Wonshik quickly walked out of the house embarrassed, almost dragging Hongbin out in the process.

The last few hours before Hakyeon decided it was time to drive back home and drop off his two companions had quickly went by with him walking around the house and conversing with some of the university students there. (At some point he was dragged into dancing by his friend Eunji along with others. He saw a few familiar faces whose movements were swift and smooth, one of them being Taemin, who he used to have dance practice with.)

"These two are idiots," Hakyeon sighed out as he saw Hyuk and Jaehwan sprawled out on the floor. After his limbs were tired from all the dancing, and not to mention the noise had died down, save a few people who were chattering and the music had been lowered to a soft volume.

He kneeled down next to Hyuk and put his hands on his shoulders, shaking him in an attempt to wake him up. Aside from Hyuk scrunching up his face and shuffling to his side, he remained asleep. Hakyeon sighed in frustration and started to poke Hyuk's cheek. He might as well take the chance to annoy the younger while he was still asleep so he would not try and retaliate. Hakyeon knows too well how rough the younger could get if he was constantly jabbed at.

After having enough with just poking the younger's face, he took out a hairband and tied Hyuk's fringe up. As he was contemplating what to do next, he noticed Eunji, along with two or three more girls, walking towards the door. He shouted her name in a hushed whisper, hoping she would hear.

Eunji turned her head upon hearing her name being called, and noticed Hakyeon who was staring at her. She walked towards him after excusing herself for a brief moment and kneeled down next to Hakyeon, asking, "What is it?"

"Do you have any lipstick on you," He asked, to which she stared at him in confusion as to why he needed it. She was about to open her mouth to reply until he added in a rush and pointed at Hyuk, "Or just anything to draw on him." 

She nodded and looked through her purse and brought out a stick of lipstick. "Ah, i also have this marker," she added, taking it out and giving both items to Hakyeon.

He took the lipstick and ran it over his cheeks, drawing in a small circle before attempting to smudge it to make it resemble blush. The action resulted in Hyuk moving around a bit. Hakyeon cursed under his breath that the younger might wake up. Eunji took notice of what he was doing and chuckled out, "You could have just asked me for blush."

Hakyeon halted his actions as he took in her words and laughed sheepishly as he realized he could have avoided bringing Hyuk further away from sleep. He took the black marker, and uncapped it, bringing it to the younger's nose. He drew a small circle on his nose and continued to draw straight lines on his cheeks, trying to make it look like whiskers.

After he finished, he moved onto his eyes and drew open eyes on his eyelids, making him seem as though he was awake.

The last thing he drew before he had deemed it good enough, was a fake beard and mustache. He slowly and carefully, to avoid waking up Hyuk, scribbled around his mouth, making a clumsly beard and mustache.

"Should I go all out and draw on his body too?" Hakyeon asked after having finished up his masterpiece. He brought his hand, which still had the marker, to his chin, and rubbed it as he contemplated. Eunji noticed how the marker ran over his chin, leaving a streak of it. She laughed softly at it, which caused Hakyeon to look at her in confusion.

She cleared her throat, recomposing herself and said, "Not unless you wanna live to see tomorrow." He nodded and closed the marker, putting its cap back on.

He tossed the marker and lipstick back to Eunji and thanked her for being hus accomplice, to which she just laughed at.

"After this, you'll really need to plan your funeral." Eunji said with a small laugh.

"Don't say something so ominous!" Hakyeon whined. Eunji snickered at his reaction and waved at him, walking back towards the front door and leaving.

He brought his hands to Hyuk's nose, and pinched it with his fingers. After waiting a few seconds, Hyuk scrunched his eyes and nose, and snapped his head to the side, to which he hit his head on the floor with the amount of force. He curled up into fetal position after the impact and put his hand on his head as he groaned.

"Shit. Are you okay?" Hakyeon asked in a panicked tone, placing his hand on Hyuk's shoulder. Hyuk turned his head towards the older, his eyebrows furrowed at both the pain and the cuplrit of it. Hakyeon let out a nervous laugh, bringing his hands up in defence as he backed away.

"Why did you make me hit myself," Hyuk said as he sat up, still rubbing the side of his head, expecting no answer from the other.

"I was just trying to wake you up," Hakyeon replied nervously. Hyuk scoffed at his answer, and said, his tone filled with sarcasm, "That's one hell of a wake up call."

In the midst of Hakyeon panicking over Hyuk and his concern, he momentarily forgot about his drawn on face. He snickered to himself, bringing his palm to his mouth to muffle it. Hyuk stared at the older in confusion.

There was suddenly some shuffling next to Hyuk. Jaehwan slowly sat up as he rubbed his eyes, getting the sleep out of them. Hakyeon and Hyuk watched quietly as he woke up slowly, and stayed still in his spot. He lifted his head to see both Hakyeon and Hyuk staring at him, but in his sleep dazed mind, he thought nothing of it.

Jaehwan's attention was shifted to Hyuk's face that had been terribly drawn on. He gazed at Hyuk for a second too long, causing Hyuk to run his hand over his face, asking, "Is there something on my face?"

After a few seconds of silence, Jaehwan erupted in laughter, clutching at his stomach in pain. Hyuk stared at the laughing man with a puzzeled expression, while Hakyeon stiffled his giggles behind his hand. Upon realizing that his face had been the reason Jaehwan was laughing too hard that he had soon gotten out of breath for, he took out his phone and brought it up to his face. He saw some markings on his face from the reflection of the dark screen, burrowing his eyebrows as to who had drawn on his face.

As Jaehwan was calming down from his laughing fit, Hakyeon quickly spoke up, hoping to avoid Hyuk catching on that the cuplrit was him and be spared from his wrath for at least the night. "It's late, I'll drop you both off at your dorms."

Hakyeon stood up from his position and had turned his body to start walking towards the front door, however a hand gripped his wrist, stopping him in his motion. Hakyeon slowly turned to look behind him, only to see Hyuk carefully observing his hands. Before he could figure out why, he wrist was flung back to him, and Hyuk quickly stood up and shouted, "You did this to my face!"

Hakyeon had a panicked look on his face as he was denying the youngers accusation. In the middle of his denying, Hyuk cut in and said, "Don't lie, your fingers are covered in black marker." Hakyeon looked down at his fingers, and noticed the marker was smudged on his fingertips.

Jaehwan started to chuckle quietly, although both Hakyeon and Hyuk heard it and turned to him, wondering what he found funny.

"You have some marker on you chin too," Jaehwan added as he pointed to his own chin. Hakyeon groaned in frustration at his little plan that failed to go unoticed, which only gained another laugh from Jaehwan.

"It was just a small prank," Hakyeon whined.

"I'll show you how a prank is done," Hyuk said as he held a eery smile on his face that sent shivers down Hakyeon's spine. "You'll help me Jaehwan right?" Hyuk added to which Hakyeon looked at Jaehwan and gave him a pleading look. Jaehwan simply smiled apologetically.

Needless to say, the whole ride back to the dorms, Hyuk talked endlessly about all the ideas he had to Jaehwan. Although he said it loud enough to put Hakyeon on edge and paranoid about what he would do. Hakyeon would pitch in his own thoughts saying one idea was too harsh, hoping his words would result in Hyuk abandoning his small revenge plan or prolonging it at worst.

"It'd be more tortuous for you if you never knew when he would go through with his plan," Jaehwan added once he had arrived at the dorm to drop them off and was thanking Hakyeon for driving them back. Hakyeon sighed knowing it all to well to be true.

"Convince him for me?" Hakyeon asked in a joking manner before Jaehwan had moved from his position near the vehicle. Jaehwan nodded with a smile on his face, and held up and 'okay' sign.

"Don't worry, I'll get that idea in into his head."

**Author's Note:**

> _Alright._   
>  _So this is my first offical fanfic on here and first attempt at actually writing a story. I hadn't planned to write one but I had gotten bored and decided to put my writing to the test._
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> _Also I am very rusty at writing. I'm probably not extremly good at going into detail about things. Although I'll try my best to do so and be as descriptive as i can. I'll try to make this story as entertaining as i can as well, although I'll probably fail on both if those lmao._
> 
> _Anyway I hope you've enjoyed reading this so far._


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